Impossible Perfection
by 123me
Summary: Third and final in the Heartbreak Trilogy. The time of judgement and dedication has come.
1. Protection

**Impossible perfection**

**Third and final in the trilogy, follows Heartbreak and Can you forgive? I'd recommend reading them before this.**

**It is very different to its prequels; it is set eight years after the end of can you forgive? I'm guessing most of you know what that means.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own High school Musical, if I did writing this would be a waste of time and I would have way better things to do.**

* * *

**Ok completely off topic: We're putting Christmas decorations up, YAY!**

* * *

Eighteen-year-old Isobel Travers glanced at the picture that had flashed up on the screen of her cell, she knew she had to answer it to avoid a lecture from her parents, whom were obviously the actual reason she was receiving the call.

"What is it Evan?" She asked as she answered the call.

"You were meant to be home hours ago, where are you?" Her nineteen-year-old stepbrother quizzed in reply.

"I was with Michael, where else would I be, and don't over-exaggerate, I'm only half an hour late, tell Mom and Dad to stop freaking out over nothing," She sighed.

"You know why they're freaking Bel," He pointed out, she gave a half-smile at the use of her nickname, people had been calling her Bel for nine long years, and it was one of the few things she liked being called.

"I know," She agreed, "But they can't keep us locked up forever because of what happened eight years ago."

"Bel…" He tried.

"Look, I'll be quicker if I get off the phone," She decided, "Bye."

She hung up, slightly resentful towards Evan for interrupting her thoughts by calling.

Michael Warner, the latest in a long line, another cheating jerk, not that Evan had to know that. Her stepbrother was somewhat protective of both her and Carly, being the only brother she and her sisters had must make him feel partially responsible for them.

She knew she needed to get her mind off of her dysfunctional family and disastrous love-life, so she decided to think about the only thing she could, Carly's seventeenth birthday, it was still a month away, but it was the only thing in her immediate life that hadn't turned into a complete train wreck, she couldn't talk to her mother about it, there really was only one person she could go to, and that would have to wait until tomorrow.

"Excuse me," A young boy of around nine blocked her path.

"What?" She asked, shifting her annoyance to the small figure, wasn't it a bit late for a child of his age to be out anyway.

"Are you Isobel Montez?" He asked her.

"Depends who's asking," She snapped in reply, checking her watch.

"I'm Charlie, Charlie Montez, your brother," The boy told her.

She looked up, vaguely remembering the small infant of a boy she had seen with her father's mistress when she was a child herself.

"You may be a blood relation or whatever, but I only have one brother, Evan Travers is my brother, you are just my biological father's son, besides, I'm not Isobel Montez, I used to be, but that changed six years ago, I'm Isobel Travers now," She spoke harshly.

"Dad wants to see you," Charlie told her, sounding like he believed he was doing her a favour.

It was then she noticed the man walking up behind the boy, she'd remember him from anywhere, she hadn't seen his face since she was nine, and didn't particularly want to now.

"Bella Bear," He sighed.

"My name is Isobel," She stated, " Not Bella bear, now if you'll excuse me, my dad is very strict on curfews."

"I'm your dad, sweetie," Kevin tried telling her.

"I think I know who my own dad is," She shot back as she pushed past the pair of them.

He grabbed her arm as she tried to walk away, she turned to face him, "I'll scream," she told him, "You know I will, and if I do people will think you assaulted me, and you'll go right back to prison, where you belong." She pulled her arm from his grip and continued walking.

She knew he wouldn't follow her, because her last words would have taught him, Isobel Travers was strong, she was strong because she had to be, she was strong because it was the one thing that protected her from mental and physical pain she had endured throughout her life, she was bullied at school after her father was sent to prison, but that didn't bother her, Allie and Lucy had proved to be true friends during those times, even Lola had been nicer towards her, but considering that Lola's uncle had re-married her mother she didn't have much choice.

Ten minutes later she unlocked the front door, said goodnight to her parents and went up to her room like nothing had happened, she could give her mother at least one more night of peace before worrying her of her father's return.

She walked into her room, the one that used to belong to her elder sister before she moved out; she knew that her sister probably knew about Kevin's release from prison, the victim was always informed after all, but she'd never thought that he'd try coming near them again, and now he had made contact, her sister had to be warned.

She checked the time, eleven, her sister would be asleep by now, that much was obvious, but there was always one other person she could count on, one other person who would definitely still be awake.

She crept out of her room and down the hall, towards her younger stepsister's room; knocking lightly she pushed open the door.

"Hey Carls," She whispered.

The sixteen-year-old turned to her from her desk in the corner of the room.

"Problem?" The girl asked, obviously reading Isobel's facial expression.

"Kevin's back," Isobel sighed.

"Kevin?" Carly asked.

"You were only eight, you won't remember much about him, and after he went to prison mom and dad didn't mention him much, but he's my biological father, he tried to kill Gab, that's why he was in prison, but he's back, and I don't know how to tell mom," Isobel explained.

"Why do you have to tell her?" Carly asked.

"He came near me, using his son to get close, so mom has to know, because Kevin Montez is like dad, he doesn't give up easily," Isobel elaborated.

"Then we tell her tomorrow," Carly stated, emphasising the we in her sentence, ever since their parents got married, Isobel and Carly had been in everything together, they were a team, and there was no breaking up the team.

Isobel nodded, "We should sleep."

Carly nodded, taking the hint as she got up from her desk, "don't worry Bel," she reassured.

Isobel smiled and went back to her own room, staring out through the glass doors and onto the balcony her sister had spent so much time on as a teenager.

* * *

"There's something up with her," Maria stated as soon as Isobel disappeared up the stairs.

"I'll go check on her," Andrew sighed, "In a while, she'll be suspicious if I go straight away."

"Do you think she remembers?" She quizzed.

"What else could it be?" He sighed, "She remembers, but I don't think that just knowing would make her that edgy."

"So you think something happened?" She questioned.

He nodded as he stood up, "Be right back."

By the time he got upstairs, Isobel was already in Carly's room, he stood by the door, careful not to cast a shadow that would give him away.

_"He came near me, using his son to get close, so mom has to know, because Kevin Montez is like dad, he doesn't give up easily," Isobel's voice was clear to him._

_"Then we tell her tomorrow," He heard his daughter reply._

He walked slowly back downstairs, contemplating what he'd just overheard, so Kevin Montez had decided to come back, more importantly, Kevin Montez had approached Isobel, he had no right to go near her, not anymore, he agreed to the adoption, Isobel wasn't legally her biological father's child anymore. Legally the girl wasn't even a Montez anymore.

He walked slowly into the lounge, glancing at his wife as he did, she gave him a questioning look, "Was it what we thought?"

"He spoke to her," Andrew relented, "I heard her telling Carly."

"So he came back," She sighed, "After everything he came back."

* * *

"All I'm saying is if he wants to be a part of my life he shouldn't walk up to me in the street at ten thirty in the evening, using his son to try and weaken me," Isobel complained.

"Ok," her elder sister smiled happily, clearly not paying attention

"It's not like I even…" She began, stopping as a cry erupted from the upstairs of the house.

"Bel, sweetie, could you go and get Tamsin for me?" She was asked.

"Er, sure," She answered, leaving the kitchen and heading for the stairs.

"Are you gonna listen to auntie Isobel, Tam?" She asked her niece as she picked her up.

"No," The three-year-old answered, it seemed to be her favourite word right now.

"Of course you're not," Isobel sighed as she carried the girl downstairs.

"Kirra," Tamsin proudly announced as they entered the kitchen, pointing at her younger sister.

Gabriella looked up, smiling at the child in her sister's arms, "Clever girl, that's Kirra isn't it?"

Tamsin nodded, almost hysterically as I put her down on the floor.

"What was it we were talking about Bel?" Gabriella asked her sister.

"Kevin," She sighed in frustration.

"What about him?" Her sister quizzed.

"He tried to talk to me last night," Isobel repeated what she'd tried to explain, "He used Charlie to get near me and I think he might come to you next."

The teenager knew she had her sister's attention now; the woman was glancing anxiously at her two daughters, probably now worried for their safety more than her own.

"When was this?" She asked after a few seconds.

"Yesterday night," Isobel told her truthfully.

"What did you tell him?" Gabriella continued quizzing.

"That I had to go because my dad's strict when it comes to curfew," The teen explained, "Don't worry, he doesn't know about Tamsin and Kirra, as far as I'm concerned they are none of his business and never will be, why would I tell him about them."

"You're a good kid, Bel," Her sister told her.

"Less of the kid," Isobel couldn't help but complain, despite the situation, "Tam and Kirra are the only kids here."

"Mommy, where daddy?" The older of the two girls suddenly spoke up.

"He's at work angel," Gabriella answered the toddler's question.

"Why?" The child questioned.

"Because it's how he gets the money to buy you presents," The woman smiled, knowing her daughter would take this as an answer.

"She's gonna be asking him where the presents are when he gets home, you know, and he's going to have no idea what she's talking about, and she'll get upset when he doesn't have anything, so he'll have to go out again and get her something to stop her from screaming her head off." Isobel explained.

"He is getting her something, he's been in New York for a week, he gets back today, she knows that, why don't you? You should know these things about your family, Bel," Gabriella teased.

"Does he know about Kevin?" Isobel ignored her sister's teasing, knowing how protective her brother-in-law would be if he really knew.

"I didn't remind him, no," She was told, "You know what he'd have been like, he would have packed us all up and moved us to Alaska, you, Evan, Carly and our parents included."

"Why Alaska?" Isobel quizzed.

"First place I thought of," Her sister admitted, "Anyway, why not?"

"Alaska's cold," Isobel stated, "it like, snows all the time."

"So it'll be like a year-round Christmas," Came her sister's answer, "The girls will love it."

"Gabi, we're not moving to Alaska," Isobel pointed out, "Why do we always go this far using a simple example?"

"Because we have nothing better to do," She was told, "So, anything else on your mind?"

"No," The teen lied, knowing her sister would see right through it.

"I'm guessing that's code for Yes," Gabriella smiled, "Come on Bel, you can tell me, who would I possibly tell? Tamsin and Kirra, I really don't think they'll care."

Isobel smiled at her sister's example then nodded, "It's not important."

"Insanely important not important or just important not important?" She was asked.

"You do realise you just said important three times," Isobel tried to change the subject.

"Bel, just tell me," Gabriella encouraged.

Isobel sighed, knowing her sister wouldn't give up, "Michael Warner," She finally said after a while.

"Your boyfriend?" Her sister quizzed.

"Now ex-boyfriend," Isobel explained, "He cheated on me, just like all the others, how did you get so lucky, Gab?"

"Lucky!" Gabriella exclaimed, "Do you not remember Kieran?"

"But you didn't end up with him," The teen pointed out, "Your life has ended up pretty much perfect, and now you've got Tamsin and Kirra, nothing's like it was Gab, when it was just you, me and Mom, do you remember that?"

"Vaguely," Gabriella laughed, "And yes, Bel, I may have my own family now, but that doesn't mean I'll ever stop needing you, you're my baby sister, you have been for eighteen long years, and you always will be, no matter what, besides, there's still plenty of time for my perfect life to go wrong."

"Way to be optimistic," Isobel smiled, "Where's Bailey?"

"Somewhere," Her sister answered, "He's been moping ever since the Harper's moved, you named the puppy yet?"

"Not yet," Isobel replied, "I still can't believe the Harper's didn't want any of them, and they gave them all to you, and I can't believe that mom let me keep one, I mean, it was obvious you'd keep at least one, but I didn't think I'd be allowed."

"There were only five of them Bel, I was hardly going to let them all go, besides, I feel better knowing that they're all still in the family," Gabriella smiled.

"Wait, all of them?" Isobel quizzed.

"Yeah," Her sister assured, "We kept two, you have one, Alistair has one and Aunt Anita gave Tia the other one as a present."

"You still see Aunt Anita?" Isobel quizzed, surprised.

"Yep," Her sister admitted, "Dad's the one that had the fight with her, not me, he may have disowned her or whatever, but I won't, she's my aunt and Tia's my cousin, I lost them when I was a child, I have them back now, I won't lose them again, no matter what dad says."

"After what she said about me?" Isobel quizzed.

"You never were told, were you?" Gabriella asked her, "Aunt Anita didn't say that stuff, her now ex-husband did, you know she see's you as family, she has ever since she met you, you know how she was always protective of me when dad found me? She'd be the same with you if you gave her a chance, she's big on protection."

"I could say the same about someone else," Isobel pointed out as she watched a car pull onto the driveway, "Remind him, Gab, he'll want to know."

* * *

**Wow, long chapter, I think that's the longest chapter I've ever written, it's longer than most of my oneshots.**

**Anyways, told you it was different.**

**REVIEW!!!!!**


	2. Confrontation

**Technology today: totally random.**

**First lesson today, the class were so evil, the teacher went home second lesson because of stress, yes, we were terrible.**

**Last lesson, we had our head of year teaching us, because the teacher had gone home, and we were actually alright, then, some randomness towards the end that went as following:**

**Miss: fifteen minutes **

**Elliot: Is that till you can get high miss?**

**Miss: I do not get high.**

**Me: (whispering to James sarcastically) Sure she don't.**

**Good times.**

* * *

**Ok, on to the story.**

* * *

"DADDY," Tamsin screamed as he walked into the kitchen.

"Princess," He cooed, seemingly just as excited as he scooped the girl into his arms.

"Mommy, daddy back!" Tamsin announced, still smiling.

"I can see that," Gabriella told her daughter, avoiding making eye contact with her husband.

"What's wrong," He automatically asked, sensing the tension in the room that he had originally missed.

"Wrong, why would anything be wrong?" Gabriella answered, turning back to Kirra.

"Tell him," Isobel demanded, "If you don't, I will, I don't want to, but you're forcing me to, Carly and I already told mom and dad, now it's your turn, and I'll never let it drop, you know, tell him."

"Tell me what?" He quizzed, "Gabi?"

"It's nothing, Troy," She tried.

"So your sister's ranting about nothing, that's not really surprising, but today I can tell she's telling the truth, what is going on?" He asked again.

"Hey," Isobel protested, and then decided not to change the subject, "Continue."

"It's not important," Gabriella kept trying, concentrating on Kirra.

"Daddy?" Tamsin asked, "Who Kebin?"

"Damn," Gabriella cursed under her breath as she realised the child must have been paying more attention than she thought.

"Is a place where water is stored," Isobel smiled at Kirra, and then turned to her sister, "You really want her saying that at her age?"

"She doesn't know what it means," Gabriella defended; glad the subject had been momentarily dropped, by her sister at least.

"Why is she asking about Kevin?" Troy spoke up.

"Can we talk about this later?" He was asked in reply.

"I'd rather talk about it now," He shot back.

"What's wrong with later? Busy? Who am I kidding, of course you are, you always are!" Came his wife's reply.

**Gabriella's POV (First in the story YAY)**

"No, I'm not busy later, I just don't think this can wait, seriously Gabi, why would you think this isn't important, why were you keeping this from me?" He exclaimed.

"She didn't want to move to Alaska," Isobel put in, earning herself a glare from my husband, she quickly retreated, "Well, I can see that you guys need to talk, so I'm gonna, you know, take the girls, and go, so you can talk, or fight, your choice, but I don't think the girls should see you fighting, so I'm gonna go, you know, hang at home, with my parents, and the girls, and probably Carly, so you guys can talk, because you need to talk, so I'm going to take the girls…"

"Isobel, will you just shut up and go," Troy ordered, clearly annoyed by her ranting.

"Don't take this out on her," I demanded as my sister picked Kirra up.

"Why daddy mad?" Tamsin asked as Isobel took her off of Troy.

"Daddy isn't mad honey, he's just worried," Isobel comforted as she carried both of the girls out of the room.

I watched her as she carried them down the street, amused that she had decided to carry them instead of use the stroller, she must have been in a hurry.

"Well?" He asked in a semi-demanding voice as soon as they disappeared from sight.

"He's back," I sighed, "He's back and he spoke to her, that's all I know."

"Why didn't you remind me?" I'd been expecting the question.

"Because I wanted to avoid this," I explained, finally turning round, "I wanted to avoid the fights I knew he'd cause, I wanted to avoid facing he's back, but most of all, I wanted to avoid facing the fact that I knew you wouldn't remember yourself."

"Let me get this straight, you're mad at me over this?" He quizzed, genuinely confused.

"No, I'm not mad," I admitted, "I'm too scared to be mad, what if he comes? What if he gets the girls? What about Mom and Bel? What's he gonna do to them?"

"Shhhhh," He tried calming as he hugged me, "At the risk of sounding like a die-hard optimist, he won't come near, if he does, he'll be dealing with me, not you or the girls, so he stand no chance of getting them, your mom and Isobel will be fine, he won't do anything to them, because your dad and I won't let him, everything will be ok."

"You don't know that," I continued, noticing that I was crying with fear.

"Yes I do," He reassured, "You're not leaving my sight until I'm sure he's gone, no exceptions, nor are the girls."

"There's a problem there," I told him.

"What's that?" He asked.

"Isobel's got the girls, they're not in your sight now." I pointed out.

"Wait a minute, didn't you say that he tried to get to Isobel last night?" He quizzed.

I nodded, "yeah, she said she didn't tell him about…"

"Shit, Gabi, she's got the girls what if he tries again?" He shouted in frustration, heading for the front door, I followed quickly, why didn't I think about that earlier?

**Isobel's POV**

"Bella bear," I heard him before I saw him.

"Go away," I called behind me, speeding up my pace, knowing that my nieces had to be my priority now.

"Bella, please talk to me," He begged.

"Here's a thought," I argued, "No, stay away from me."

I continued walking, wanting nothing more than for him to turn and leave.

"Isobel, please, you owe me this," He continued.

I spun round on my heel, suddenly angry, "Owe you, I owe you nothing."

"You're a part of me Bella, I need you to live my life." He tried.

"Then go crawl off and die," I spoke, knowing it was harsh but meaning every word.

"Who dat?" I heard Tamsin whisper to me.

"He's no one, he's not important," I replied, aloud, wanting him to hear me.

"Bella," He pleaded, "Can you at least tell me why you have two kids with you?"

"I Tamsin," My eldest niece exclaimed as I tried to shut her up, she wouldn't be silent, "That Kirra, Kirra Lily Maria Bolton."

"That's a nice name," He cooed, reaching out for her.

I took a step back to ensure that the kids and myself were beyond his grasp.

"Don't touch them," I demanded, "Don't even talk to them. Don't even talk to me, I'm not interested."

"Bella…" He started.

"ISOBEL," I shouted, "My name is Isobel."

"Ok, Isobel, I'll do anything, I'll make this up to you, I want to be your dad again, you've got to give me that, please, I'm your father." He begged.

"How can you possibly make this up to me?" I quizzed, "You tried to kill my sister, you hit my mom, I don't think it's possible for me to hate someone more than I hate you, just stay away from me, stay away from my family, stay out of my life, and everything should be fine."

"Isobel…" He tried, but stopped as a car stopped next to us.

I took another step back as my sister rushed out of the car and over to me, Troy getting out of the other door, but he was heading for Kevin, this was going to be one great show, one great show that the girls shouldn't see.

"Montez," I heard Troy state when he was standing in front of Kevin, my sister was speaking to me a mile a minute, but I wasn't listening, I wanted to see this, I wanted to see the vermin that was my biological father get what he deserved.

"Are they your kids?" Kevin was asking Troy.

"That has nothing to do with you," Troy snarled, I couldn't recall ever seeing him this angry, and I'd known him for nearly ten years, "Stay away," I heard him demand, "Stay away from my family, Isobel included, you're not wanted, do everyone a favour and crawl back into whatever hole you came from."

I'd been expecting him to be violent, but had pretty much figured out that the only reason he wasn't was because he didn't want us seeing that, I knew for a fact that Gabriella had only ever seen it once herself, and he clearly didn't want her seeing how violent he could get for a second time, he really was big on protection, even if it was only over witnessing violence.

* * *

**Ooooo, will he go? Won't he go? Will he get a broken nose? Will I ever give you Tamsin's full name?**

**Ok, so the last one was a bit random.**

**REVIEW!! My mentality depends on it (Not really, but it'd be weird if it did)**


	3. Inspiration

**Today wasn't so random, no fair; I like random days. OMG, I have nothing to say.**

* * *

**Isobel's POV**

"Bel, please talk to me," I heard the unmistakeable voice of Michael Warner from behind me.

I turned around slowly, not wanting to rush myself for a jerk like him, "Why can't you just leave me alone? Do you enjoy making my life hell? Is it all a game to you? I don't want to hear your excuses Michael, I said it to my father, and I'm saying it to you, I'M.NOT.INTERESTED."

"Bel, you have to listen," He tried, "What happened was a mistake, it was never meant to happen."

"You mean I was never meant to see it happen," I pointed out surely.

"Bel…" He started.

"I thought I told you to stay away from her," I heard Lucy all but shout, "When I say stay away, Warner, I mean stay away if you value your life."

"Luce," He complained, "She's my girlfriend."

"Ex-girlfriend," I corrected.

"Bel, come on, you know I'm sorry," He argued, "Give me a break."

"No," I refused, "You don't deserve it."

"Izzie," He tried sucking up even more, I rolled my eyes at his attempts, he knew as well as I did that it wouldn't work, I didn't give second chances.

"Come on Bel," Lucy sighed, "We should go to homeroom, it's jerk-free."

I nodded and followed her, feeling Michael's eyes burning into me as I did, why did he always do that? He'd never been like the other guy's I'd ever dated, he was different, just goes to show how wrong you can be about someone, trust is often misplaced.

"So, is Misobel definitely over?" Lucy asked as we walked off.

"Misobel?" I questioned.

"Allie and I blended your names together, everybody does nowadays, we honestly thought this one was for keeps, kinda like Troyella." My friend explained.

"Troyella?" I continued quizzing.

"Your sister and brother-in-law," She replied nonchalantly.

"You gave my sister's marriage a nickname!" I exclaimed, "that is so out of control."

"Completely out of control," Lucy agreed, "Allie started it, and I'm pretty sure I heard Lola saying Misobel once, what's with you Bel, weird friends, weird family, weird everything, really."

"Luce, you just called yourself weird," I pointed out.

"Only speaking the truth," She giggled.

"Truth!" I gasped.

"What?" Lucy asked, clearly startled.

"Sorry, you reminded me of something I should have told my parents, I was going to tell them, but Gabi told me not to, so I didn't, I was gonna tell them when she left but I forgot," I explained.

"Since when did you ever listen to Gabi?" Lucy questioned.

"Never over this sort of thing, but it got to her, you know, really got to her, she was semi-panicked or whatever, so she asked me not to tell them because if they freaked out then she'd freak out more than she already was and then she said something about Tam and Kir not needing her to freak out which led to a sort of hyperventilation which was kinda scary…" I ranted.

"God Bel, I didn't ask for your life story," Lucy joked as I spotted Allie through the crowds chatting mindlessly on her cell.

I pointed her out to Lucy, who nodded, immediately knowing what I was suggested.

Allie turned to open her locker, so she didn't see us as we snuck up on her; she was so engrossed in her call she probably wouldn't have noticed anyway.

"No cell phones in the hall Miss Moore," We stated in unison from behind her.

"Every time, Allie, every time," I pointed out through laughter.

"You guys, that was so not funny," Our friend complained as she turned around.

"Was to us," Lucy was still grinning.

I nodded in agreement as Allie glared at the both of us as she brought her attention back to the call.

"Yeah, dad, whatever, that's great, look, I gotta go, I'm in school, and as my two wonderfully loud friends just pointed out, I'm not meant to be using my cell in here, so, bye." Allie explained, we waited a few seconds until she hung up, knowing she would start complained, "He just won't stop calling, Izzie, what do you do when your dad pesters you? Not Andrew dad, your real dad."

"I don't answer," I answered truthfully, recalling the phone calls I received from him over the past few days, "He's only just started calling, but I'm hoping he'll give up soon, I still have no idea how he got my number, but I told him to stop coming near and he started calling, but I guess I'm good as long as he stays away from Mom and Gabi, and the girls of course, if he goes near them there'll be hell to pay."

"Don't you even want to hear him out?" Allie questioned as we started walking towards homeroom.

"No, not really," I admitted, "I mean, as far as I'm concerned he's not my dad, Andrew's my dad, he has been for almost nine years, legally for almost seven years, all I share with Kevin is biology, think about it, given the choice, would you rather have a father or a sister?"

"I don't have a sister," Allie pointed out, "Neither does Luce, so you're the only one that can really have a say in that."

"If you want my opinion," I told them, "I'd rather have my sister in my life than him, he's worthless, she's always been there, she never left me when he did, she cared when I was younger and he didn't, I guess that's why I don't need him now, Andrew's different, with all four of us, he's made a point of being there whenever one of us needs him."

"Didn't he treat Gabi, Evan and Carly better though? Them being his kids and all? Most guys would, is he in the majority" Lucy spoke up.

"Ok, A. No he was fair to all of us, B. What's with this sudden interest you two seem to have developed in my dad, it's creepy," I teased as we finally got to homeroom.

"We don't have an interest in your dad, Bel," Allie defended, "I was just thinking that knowing more about yours could help me deal with mine."

"God, Allie, I was kidding," I pointed out as I made my way to the back of the room.

**Gabriella's POV**

"I'm not leaving them," I refused, staring Troy in the eye.

"Yes you are," He smiled.

"No, I'm not," I insisted, "Either I stay with them or they come to work with me."

"They can't go to work with you Gab, you know that wouldn't work, and you have to go to work, see, from what I figured out, the bosses like the staff who actually turn up more than they like the ones that are never there," He tried making a point.

"But she looks so sad," I gestured over to Tamsin as Kirra started squirming in his arms.

"Gabi, she's painting happily, smiling like nothing else matters, how is she sad?" He quizzed.

"I'm still not leaving her," I protested, pouting at him.

"She's always like this," He explained to Sally, the woman who was smiling amusedly at the pair of us as we argued about leaving the girls in daycare for the first time, "Over-protective, gets it off me I suppose,"

"You'd be surprised how many parents are like this on their child's first day," The older woman smiled, "They'll be fine,"

"But what if she's bad, she can get out of control, and you have to use her full name to get her to calm down, she can be really impossible," I continued.

"Then they can use her full name," Troy pointed out.

"Do they have it?" I quizzed.

"I have it as Tamsin Sarah Bethany Bolton," Sally smiled, "You gave it to me when you came to visit remember, I said the girls names were nice and if they were named after anyone special."

"And I said you could say that," I smiled at the memory, remembering Sarah Sharpe as I did, It took me a while to realise that she had been purposely distracting me in an attempt to coax me into leaving, "But I'm still not leaving."

"Gabi, we talked about this," Troy reminded me as he handed Kirra to Sally.

"But…" I began, stopping as Tamsin appeared from behind Sally.

"Mrs Mommy, stop wuwying, go put bad mwan in dwail," She ordered, making her voice as strong as it could go," Me and Kirra be ok."

I smiled as I noted to myself that she definitely had her father's confidence, there was no way I would have spoken like that in front of a stranger, mom once told me I was somewhat mute around people I didn't know at Tamsin's age.

I watched as Sally put Kirra down on the floor and Tamsin pulled her over towards the paint.

"That reminds me," I decided, "Tamsin has this think about painting Kirra, and I'd really appreciate if she, you know, didn't."

"I'll keep an eye out," Sally promised, still smiling.

"Do I have to leave them?" I asked Troy again.

"Yes," He answered, "Go and be Mrs. Mommy for a while, Tamsin wants you to."

"Please don't tell me you're going to call me that too," I sighed.

"I might," He teased, " Gotta love it when kids give you nicknames."

"You know my clients don't actually call me Mrs Mommy, Troy, that would be unprofessional," I pointed out, then changed my tone, "I'm still not happy about leaving them, what happened to not letting the three of us leave your sight?"

"Isobel said Kevin hasn't been around for a while, that it's just been phone calls, and you don't have to be happy about it, you just have to deal with it," He pointed out, and then turned to Sally, "I'll pick them up at three, call me if they're any trouble at all, hopefully they won't be, I think the biggest problem today will be getting my wife to leave, come on Gabi."

"Do I have to?" I asked again.

"Yes," He sighed, grabbing my hand and pulling me down the hall, "You're child obsessed, you should have gone into childcare not law," He joked as we got outside.

"You never did ask what made me choose law," I pointed out, " I always said that I wanted to be a doctor, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember," He told me, "It was the whole Kevin thing that changed your mind, wasn't it?"

I nodded in admittance, "After I saw him get what he deserved, I wanted to thank them somehow, what better way to thank them than to send people down myself."

"And you're making the streets safer while you're there," he smiled, "I'm so proud of you. You're job must be a lot to handle, especially with two kids, but on top of that you have to deal with the fame that being married to me brings, I swear you're an angel."

"I'm not an angel," I sighed, "I'm just doing what any good wife slash mother slash lawyer would do."

"Juggling?" He Joked.

"In a way, I guess," I answered, "I needed to find a balance between home and work, as well as the whole celebrity thing, I guess that's why it was so hard to leave them, because I haven't yet found that balance, I've been at home quite a lot since Tam was born."

"Promise me something?" He asked.

"Anything." I replied.

"Promise me that you'll start living for you aswell as the girls," He asked.

I nodded, agreeing to do what he was asking; after all, it did make sense, I'd pretty much put my life on hold when I had Tamsin.

"Do you remember out last day of high school?" He asked.

I nodded, a smile forming as the memory came flooding back.

_Flashback_

"_So," Troy started, "By the end of today it's all over."_

"_What's over?" I quizzed, suddenly worried._

"_Our high school careers," He smiled, "Definitely not us, no that'll never be over, I won't allow it, I refuse, and if you even try and leave me, I'll hold you hostage until you realise how much you love me and can't live without me, because it's not happening."_

_I giggled at his miniature speech, "Who said I was planning on leaving you?"_

"_No one, I'm just saying before you think about it, not happening, so don't waste your thoughts." He explained_

"_You can waste thoughts?" I asked curiously._

"_Yes, because the time you spend thinking about something I'll never let happen, could be spent thinking about something else." He smiled._

"_Like what?" I quizzed, and then suggested, "Chad?"_

"_Nope," He grinned, "Me, everybody thinks about me."_

"_Of course," I agreed, not wanting to ruin the moment by mentioning his ego, tickling would certainly change the mood, "Are you gonna miss anyone?"_

"_Like who?" He quizzed, "You, I miss you every time you leave my sight, you have got to stop doing that, it hurts, seeing you walk away."_

"_I mean the gang, are you gonna miss them?" I questioned._

"_Gabi, I'm going to college with Chad, you, Katelyn and Taylor won't be far away, all of the other guys will be at U of A when we visit home, who could I possibly miss?" He asked._

"_Kelsi, Ryan, Sharpay," I suggested._

"_Kelsi, maybe, definitely if I need to compose a song, Ryan and Sharpay, not so much, I never really knew them enough," He explained, "I'm just glad I don't have to miss you, glad that you'll never be far, because that, I wouldn't be able to deal with."_

_End Flashback_

"That was a good day," I recalled.

"Yeah, it was," He agreed, "And I was right, I haven't let you walk away yet, still not planning to, and I never missed you for too long."

"Chad and Taylor made it work as well," I smiled, thinking of my friends.

"I was surprised by that," He admitted, "They were just so different, they had next to nothing in common, but they're still together, they're an inspiration to couples everywhere really."

"Strange," I smiled.

"What is?" He asked.

"Isobel says the same thing about us," I explained, "but as you're obsessing about me going to work, I'm gonna go now, so you can miss me all day."

"That's a cruel and unusual punishment," He complained as I walked away.

* * *

**Wow, another long chapter, I wonder how long I'll have the inspiration to write long ones, Christmas is good for my writing, it's official.**

**REVIEW!!!!! **


	4. Stressed

Charlie Montez walked quickly down the street by his father's side, he had no idea where they were going, but he knew he had to follow, his father wasn't a threat in himself, but his mother was a different story.

He needed to get away, his sister had been his only hope, and she'd blown him off, like he meant nothing to her, then again, maybe he didn't, it's not like they knew eachother, she didn't owe him anything, even as a baby he caused her nothing but misery, to her he was clearly an inconvenience, one she didn't want or need, and he couldn't blame her, after everything their father had put her through, after all the pain he'd caused her. Of course, Charlie had never been told any of this, but it wasn't hard to discover things on the internet, all he'd wanted was the reason his father was in prison, he got more than he bargained for when he found out about Gabriella and Isobel.

Even at nine, Charlie knew it would be unfair to ask Gabriella for help, unlike Isobel, she wasn't even a blood relation, he couldn't expect her to care, he'd just have to do what he'd done for the past few years, he'd just have to deal with it.

He continued walking beside his father; neither had said a word since the boy had been pulled out of school, but he wasn't surprised, it happened a lot now, everything had changed since Kevin Montez returned.

He looked up from his feet as he realised his father had stopped, he glanced up at the building looming above them, East High, what were they doing here? Teenagers were everywhere; their school day would have just ended

"CARLY," He heard his father shout, he glanced around the area they were currently occupying and turned his attention to the girl that was now looking at them, she seemed to be contemplating them in her head, then, she slowly approached.

"Sorry, do I know you?" She asked when she reached them.

"No," Charlie heard his father admit, "But I know you, you're Carly Marissa Travers, daughter of Andrew Travers and Alyssa Bains, step-daughter of Maria Travers, sister of Evan and Gabriella Travers,"

"Done your research," The girl questioned, looking confused, "Not well though, my sister, its Bolton, not Travers, Gabriella Bolton, look, I don't know you, and so I shouldn't be talking to you and..."

"What did I tell you?" The group heard the fuming voice ask.

Charlie watched as Isobel strode towards them, it was clear that she was fuming.

"Bel?" the other teen asked.

"I told you to stay away from us," Isobel continued, "All of us, why go near her anyway? She's got nothing to do with you, dad'll kill you for this."

"Who's gonna tell him, Bel?" Kevin questioned.

"They don't need to tell me," Andrew's voice came from behind him, "Isobel's told you and now I'm telling you, stay away from my family."

"Isobel's my daughter, not yours, mine," Kevin argued.

"Not anymore, not legally," Andrew pointed out, "Stay away from them, or I will get the police involved." Andrew momentarily glanced down at Charlie, and then back up to Kevin and stated simple words, "You're not wanted." He turned to his daughters, without words they walked towards the car, ignoring Kevin as they went.

**Gabriella's POV**

"Tay, Tay, cool it, you're stressed," I tried calming my friend.

"Stressed, Gabi, stressed, of course I'm stressed, Tyler's been screaming all day and I still don't know why, Sophie's daycare called saying someone needs to pick her up because she's ill, I can't leave home because every time I try and leave Tyler screams louder, I can't get hold of Chad and my boss is breathing down my neck, do I need to continue?" She ranted.

"Calm down," I demanded, "I'll go and get Sophie, I'll call Troy and ask him if he knows where Chad is, your boss can wait, you concentrate on Tyler."

She nodded in agreement, knowing that I had a point.

"I should be the one stressed, you know," I pointed out, "leaving the girls for the first time, Kevin stalking Isobel now he's out, being hounded by the paparazzi because of Troy, going back to work, if I can do this Tay, then you can."

She nodded again, clearly trying her hardest to stay calm.

"Kids aren't easy Tay," I pointed out, "We carry on because we love them, because we can't imagine life without them."

"I know," She admitted, "It's just, they make life a little too hectic, things can't be organised with Tyler and Sophie around."

"They can," I told her, "Just in a different way, a new way, think about it."

"Are you sure you can get Sophie?" She asked.

"Yes, I'm sure," I reassured her, "I'm on my lunch, I can get there and bring her back in time, but I can't stay, you'll be ok with them both until Chad gets back, right?"

"I guess," She relented.

"Try herbal tea, it's calming," I suggested, knowing that she hated the stuff.

"Not a chance," She replied as she smiled.

"Didn't think so," I answered, "I should go and get Sophie."

She nodded as I headed towards the door.

"Go check on Tyler," I demanded when I saw her following me, "I'll be fine, so will Sophie, relax."

She smiled and headed upstairs as I opened the door and stepped out of the house.

* * *

**I know it's short, but hopefully i'll have a longer one tomorrow, i'm writing these and putting them up straight away right now, i need to catch up.**


	5. Truth

**Disclaimer: I do not own High School Musical, or the wizard of oz for that matter, I own my fingers though, and my toes.**

* * *

Isobel knew she had to move on, that she had to get on with her life, but why was it so damn hard? Why was her family trying to make it so hard?

She'd decided three years ago that she didn't need them, that Carly would be the only one she could ever trust, even Gabriella had changed a lot since college, Isobel didn't like these changes, and hiding them from her family was getting increasingly easier, but still, the teen had never really thought about these problems in as much depth before, but now Kevin was back it made her wonder, was he the cause of these changes? Or was it something or someone else, someone she vaguely remembered from her past.

Isobel didn't want to cause her sister more pain, but she wanted answers, and tracking down the past was the only way.

Kieran Sanchez was walking his dog when he noticed the approaching girl, he knew her from somewhere, he just couldn't remember where.

"Do I know you from somewhere?" He asked when she reached him.

"If you're who I think you are then yes," The girl replied, "Are you Kieran Sanchez?"

"Yeah," He answered truthfully, eyeing the girl curiously, he definitely knew her from somewhere.

"Isobel," She told him, then continued as she took note of the questioning look on his face, "Isobel Travers, though you may remember me as Isobel Montez."

He gasped as her name triggered a memory, "Gabriella's sister?"

"In the flesh," The girl stated, "And I want answers."

"What do you want to know?" He relented immediately, wanting to get her away from him as he remembered the subtle warnings he received from all of her elder sister's friends before he had left East High.

"Why my family hate you would be a start," She told him.

"That's a long story," He tried covering.

"I got time," The teen shot back.

"So your parents know you're here?" He finally decided to ask.

"Do you think I'd be here if they did?" Isobel quizzed.

"How did you get here if they don't know?" He asked.

"It's called money management, moron, I paid for myself, but don't worry, I'm not completely stupid, if my family don't trust you I'm not gonna, my sister knows I'm here, besides like I said, I'm here because I want answers," Isobel explained.

"Gabi let you come?" He questioned.

"Not Gabi you idiot, Carly knows I'm here, so if you decide to murder me, then you'll be prime suspect anyway, because she knows I was coming here, and Gab, she'll lock you up for life, gotta love having a lawyer for a sister," Isobel smirked.

"You really think insulting me is the way to get answers, insulting me in the middle of a Washington street none the less," He sighed.

"Well, Gab always said you were just a worthless moronic idiot when I asked, so I figured it would work, idiots fall for anything," The teen stated, "Now, speak."

"Ask Gabi if you want to know," he snapped.

"She won't tell me," I pointed out, annoyed, "She's changed and I want to know why, and I'm not going to give up on finding out until I exhaust all my options."

**Carly's POV**

"Carls, do you know what time Bel came in last night?" Dad questioned me as soon as I got up.

"She didn't," I stated as I stifled a yawn, "she went away for the weekend."

"WHAT?" He all but screamed, "She's eighteen Carly, why didn't you tell me this? Where did she go?"

"Washington," I yawned again, "She told me to tell you she's gone to see Kieran Sanchez seeing as no one here will answer any questions, and she should be back tomorrow morning."

"Kieran?" He quizzed as I noticed panic was beginning to overtake him, "Tell me you're kidding Carls."

"Nope," I admitted, "Why?"

"Do you know how dangerous that man is?" Dad asked, "He tried to kill Gabi when they were fifteen, Carly, god knows what he could do to Bel, why didn't you stop her?"

"Not my place," I pointed out, "She wouldn't have listened anyway, and I see what she means, that no one tells her anything, because no one tells me anything, think about it dad, if I'd have known about this Kieran guy sooner, I could have told you she was planning on going before she left."

"You should have told me anyway, Carly," He told me as he picked up his cell, clearly to call Mom; I bet she would have told me if she knew I didn't know.

**Gabriella's POV**

"Back to bed," Troy ordered as I walked into the kitchen.

"But I've got so much to get done," I complained.

"Yes you have," He smiled, "Sleep, Watching DVD's, reading, more sleep, you have a very busy day ahead of you, now bed."

"But…" I started to complain again, but stopped in surrender at the look her gave me.

"I'll carry you if I have to," He pointed out, "You know I will, you're ill, so today you're not taking care of anyone, I forbid it, you're going back to bed, and you're going to rest and get better."

"It's just a cold," I tried.

"Then why were you burning up earlier?" He asked.

"Ok, ok" I relented, "I'm sick, I picked Sophie up from daycare on Wednesday and she was sick, I must have got it off of her or something."

"Bed," He ordered, "And if it's contagious stay away from the girls."

"Yes Doctor," I sighed as I made my way back upstairs.

**Troy's POV**

"Where mommy?" I heard Tamsin ask from the kitchen floor.

"Mommy's sick, you're stuck with me today," I told her.

"NOOOOOO," She screamed, "I WANT MOMMY, NOT YOU."

"Tamsin, quiet, Mommy and Kirra are both sleeping." I explained, keeping calm.

"Is Kirra sick too?" The child asked.

"No, Kirra's sleepy," I answered, "You should be sleepy soon too."

"I'll never be sleepy," She argued as she yawned, "Never ever, ever, ever, ever."

"Of course not," I agreed as I picked her up, she immediately laid her head on my shoulder.

"I don't want mommy to be sick." She yawned.

"Nor do I," I admitted, "but she'll be ok, Tam, you know that?"

I received no answer, telling me that the three-year-old was already asleep.

I smiled as I carried her upstairs and laid her on her bed.

"Sweet dreams, princess," I whispered as I left the room.

**No One's POV**

"Where are the kids?" Chad asked as he walked into his home on that Saturday morning.

"My Sister's," Taylor answered without even looking at him, "I needed a break."

"So you left them with Alicia!" He exclaimed, "You know what she's like, she'll get Soph all hyped up on candy while they're there."

"If you'd have been here I wouldn't have had to take them to my sister's" Taylor pointed out, "But I was so stressed, Gabi said I needed a break, that I needed to relax, so I decided to take her advice, where have you been anyway?"

"New York, you know that," He sighed from where he was standing.

"Funny, Troy told Gabi that you left before him, and he's been back for almost two weeks," Taylor replied.

"I had other things to do," Chad tried to cover, wondering how long he could go on keeping this from her, he knew she'd find out sooner or later, but he'd rather it was later.

"Like what?" She quizzed.

"It's not important," he tried, knowing she'd probably accept it but would be suspicious in the future.

She nodded and went back to the book she was reading. He knew that if he tried talking to her now he'd gain no reply, she'd be unresponsive for the rest of the day, because now, they were officially in an undeclared fight.

**Isobel's POV**

I couldn't believe what I had just heard, the man I'd gone to for answers had tried to kill my sister, seriously, why do I even want answers? They just make life difficult, I shouldn't be so nosey, I should let my sister live her life and stay out of the past, it was, after all, history.

"Wait," I heard Kieran call from behind me, "How are you getting home."

"Clicking my heels together and saying, 'there's no place like home' three times," I smirked sarcastically without turning, "How'd you think, moron, on a plane."

I continued walking, wanting to forget that this man even existed, yep, I really have to stop being so nosey.

* * *

**Review! because i'm one of those freaks that reads every review personally and doesn't mind getting hints and ideas etc.**


	6. Marital

**Ok, this is kinda fluffy and dramatic at the same time, and hey I'm not messing with Troy and Gabriella as much as I was in the prequels (Warning: which mean's I'm about to start messing with them in Getting Through), I'm messing with Taylor and Chad in this one, because Gabriella's life has already been dramatic enough (because I'm evil), so there will be pretty much an equal amount of fluff and drama now (boo).**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

"MOMMY, MOMMY," I heard Tamsin shouting repeatedly from the lounge.

"What is it sweetie?" I asked as I walked into the room.

"DADDY ON TV!" She squealed pointing at the screen, she calmed down a bit to ask, "Daddy said you sick yestwerdway, you still sick?"

"No, I'm not sick anymore," I explained, watching my husband speaking on the screen.

**Troy's POV**

"Any new strategies you'd like to share with us?" Hannah Morgan quizzed, for someone new in the world of TV interviews she was doing pretty well.

"Plenty of new strategies, yes," I admitted, "None that I can share though, can't give away the secrets of the team."

"So you're loyal to your team then?" She continued shooting questions.

"Who wouldn't be?" He asked, "Teams stick together, you know, most of those guys are like my brothers, win together, lose together team mates, when you're out on the court, there can't be anything on you're mind but the team."

"Speaking of teams," She continued, "How's the home team?"

"Perfect," I grinned, everybody knew that my family were my favourite subject when it came to any discussion.

"Nobody seems to have seen your wife for a while, it's like she's disappeared, any idea how she's manages to stay out of the spotlight when you're in it so much?" She asked.

"She's been busy, she actually went back to work full time this week, she's been hesitant to over the past four years, our girls are her life, she was wary about letting them go to daycare, but yeah, she's back at work and they're all good." I answered.

"The girls, that would be Tamsin and Kirra, right?" She questioned.

"They're the ones," I smiled proudly, "I'm blessed to have them, all three of them, how much Gabi is willing to deal with amazes me, and the girls, they're so incredibly smart for their ages, Tamsin's always telling us not to worry, and she knows exactly what she wants, Kirra has the sweetest smile, it's near identical to Gabi's, it's just so adorable."

"So, we here and PCT sports** (completely made up, first letters of words Pillow, Christmas and Tree, I just happened to see the,) **heard that next week is special for quite a few reasons, could you give us a few?" She asked, hoping to change the subject.

"There's a few family birthdays next week," I started, "Tamsin's fourth on the Tuesday, followed by Gabi's sister Carly on the Thursday, Maria's on the Friday and then there's my parents anniversary on the Monday, Chad's anniversary on the Sunday, it should be a pretty good week event wise."

"By Chad you mean Chad Danforth?" She quizzed.

"Yeah, his anniversary is a big deal in our family because he's been my friend since pre-school, Tay and Gabi have been friends since Junior year High school, so in a way it's like they're part of our family," I explained.

"So," She smiled, "New York, what went on there?"

"Not much, we had a few games but most of it was publicity, I think the highlight of the trip was coming home and seeing my girls again, angels, all three of them, I'm reminded of how important they are every time I go away, even if it's just a few days, I always miss them so much it hurts, I think that what gets me through the trips is knowing that I'll see them when I get home," I waxed lyrical, bringing the subject of discussion back to my family.

**Taylor's POV**

"I can do this," I whispered to myself as I watched Chad pulling faces at Sophie.

I walked into the room, still mentally reassuring myself.

"Mommy, daddy's being silly," Sophie exclaimed when she saw me.

"Daddy's always silly sweetheart," I smiled down at her, felling Chad's eyes burning into my temple.

"Are we good now?" He asked, making me turn to face him.

"I guess," I sighed, "Not like I have much choice do I?"

"Yes you do," He pointed out, "You could choose to trust me and let this drop, or you could choose to stay mad over something you know nothing about."

"True," I admitted quietly as Tyler started crying, I turned to leave the room.

"I'll get that," Chad told me as he put a hand on my shoulder, "You do too much already."

"Mommy, I go back to daycare tomorrow?" Sophie asked.

She hadn't been since Gabriella had picked her up on Wednesday; I hadn't wanted to risk sending her back when she could still have been contagious.

"Yes," I agreed, "Yes you do, maybe daddy will take you for a change."

I watched as her face lit up at the prospect of Chad taking her to daycare, knowing it probably wouldn't happen, I didn't really want our marital problems to affect her, most kids blame themselves when their parent's divorce, I don't want Sophie and Tyler to be them kids, so I have to fight for my marriage, and if that doesn't work, I have to make sure they no it isn't their fault, not that they'll understand right now.

* * *

**Review! Because once again, I do read them, because I'm sad and have nothing better to do with my life (actually I do, things like homework, I just don't enjoy them as much as reading and responding to reviews) Chances are I won't be able to update tomorrow, I have some family thing and then Geology coursework to complete by Thursday, but if I get 5+ reviews by Monday, everyone that reviews will be mentioned in a dedication for the next chapter.**


	7. Annoyance

**Wow, reviews, the reviewers are my best friends, after Lucy, Kerry and my actual friends, not that Lucy and Kerry aren't my friends, they are, but one I'll never see again, infact I only knew her for a week, she said I was her best friend, she's three, and as for Kerry, Kerry's a nutcase, so I'm not sure she counts, and yes, she will murder me for saying that.**

* * *

**Oh yeah, update on the whole teacher going home because we were evil in tech: He is no longer allowed to teach our group because he was yelling so loud they could hear him at the other side of the building and he chucked glue at us, which could have blinded us, too bad, he was a good teacher, but then I guess that I'm a good student, I hardly ever have detention, GO ME!!**

* * *

**Ok this chapter is dedicated to:**

**Estel212**

**coolio1206**

**angeex3**

**xjustxbeingxmex**

**SpiritxXxWildfire**

**jazzybabe7**

**hsmgal142**

**luv me xoxo GossipGal**

**linklover26**

* * *

**Some facts: This chapter is short, I have to go back to school for a drama rehearsal, I think it is unfair, I officially hate my school, I can't wait to leave it, because it stops me from writing this story, and getting through, and I like writing my stories, and hereby hate anything that stops me writing them**

* * *

**Carly's POV**

Sunday afternoons, lazy to say the least, but that's a good thing, no school, all homework completed, Sunday afternoon is the time to rest and hang with friends, or, in my case, annoying your sister on the internet.

**Carlyluvsu: **So, sup?

**GLB: **Sup?

**Carlyluvsu: **It's a greeting Gab; go with it.

**GLB: **I know what it is Carly; it's just weird coming from you.

**Carlyluvsu: **How? It's a word, gees!

**GLB: **What's with the exclamation marks?

**Carlyluvsu: **What's with the boring display name?

**GLB: **My initials Carls

**Carlyluvsu: **Whatev, anyway's, how's life?

**GLB: **Erm, I'm living it.

**Carlyluvsu: **I want details Gab, I hardly see you anymore.

**GLB: **I went back to work; the girls went to daycare, what else is there to say?

**Carlyluvsu: **Has your IQ dropped or something, there's loads more, Tam's b-day for one.

**GLB: **It's in a few days.

**Carlyluvsu: **Has marriage made you clueless?

**GLB:** No, you did that sweetie.

**Carlyluvsu: **Thanks, geek!

**GLB: **Cheerleader!

**Carlyluvsu: **Freak!

**GLB: **Snob!

**Carlyluvsu: **Daddy's girl

**GLB: **That's not much of an insult, Carls

**Carlyluvsu: **By daddy I meant Kevin, yeah, Bel told me.

**GLB: **Meanie

**Carlyluvsu: **Always

**GLB: **REBEL, Carly's a rebel.

**Carlyluvsu: **Ok, so I'm gonna go, because I'm not a rebel, you are, au Revior!

**GLB: **Wait, I still have more insults.

**Carlyluvsu: **Bye, see you at Tam's party.

So much for me annoying her, she's always been better at annoying me, I guess I don't have the annoyance gene like her and Bel, must come from their mom.

On the subject of Bel:

5

4

3

2

1

"ISOBEL TRAVERS WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?" Dad yelled, so predictable, this I have to hear.

**Isobel's POV**

"I was thinking I'd get some answers," I replied, noting that he hadn't used my middle name.

"You should have asked me or your mother," He pointed out.

"You wouldn't have told me," I shot back.

"That's probably true," He admitted, "But you still shouldn't have gone, your mother and I were worried sick, going to Kieran was stupid."

"Whatever," I sighed as I started walking upstairs.

"Isobel, don't turn your back on me," He demanded, but I ignored it and continued walking.

"Hey Carls," I smirked as I saw her standing around the corner at the top of the stairs, "Amazing how much you're like me, I would have done the same."


	8. Insecurities

Troy's POV 

"Hey, what's wrong?" I asked as soon as I closed the front door.

She shook her head, probably knowing it would worry me more.

"Come on, don't bottle it up, because eventually you will run out of bottles, and then I'd have to go and buy you more, but if you just told me, we could save money, so, speak," I tried lightening the mood, guessing that it wouldn't work.

She gave me a blank look and looked back at her hands. I sat down next to her, knowing it would tell her that I wouldn't let this drop.

"Gabi?" I questioned, "Talk to me,"

"It's just…" She tried, and then paused before covering, "It doesn't matter."

"That's code for it does matter but you're not sure if you want to tell me," I pointed out, "So I have two options here, let it drop or force you to speak, so I think I'll go with forcing you to speak."

"It's stupid," She sighed.

"So's Chad," I joked.

"Troy, I'm serious," She complained.

"See, you can speak, now all you need to do is follow the same process to tell me what's wrong," I exclaimed.

"Tamsin's birthday made me think, that's all," She reluctantly relented.

"About?" I questioned.

"My fourth birthday is the first birthday I remember in my life," She sighed, "It was also the first of the two I remember my dad being at when I was a kid, I know, I know, it's stupid, I know it won't be the same for her and that I'm just over thinking everything and that she's not me, but…"

"Shhhhh," I cut her off, pulling her towards me, "I'm not going anywhere, not even if you want me to, you don't have a choice when it comes to that, I love the three of you too much to even consider leaving, your dad didn't leave by choice either Gab, you've known that for years, I didn't know it still affected you so much."

"I didn't either," She whispered, "I just don't want her to have what I had, she deserves so much more, they both do."

"She won't have what you had, I'm not going anywhere," I continued reassuring, "I'm staying for the good and the bad."

Gabriella's POV 

I looked for any hint of hurt in his eyes, but saw none, the worry was evident, but that seemed to be all he felt right now, worried.

"I know you're not going," I admitted, "You say it a lot, I just need to let the past go, but it's hard, especially now Kevin's back, and dad called, Bel went looking for Kieran, and I can't deal with him coming back, I don't know I'll do if he comes back aswell."

"He won't come back," Troy soothed, "He wasn't that stupid, remember what the others did, he won't come back."

Flashback "…so we came up with a plan," Taylor explained. 

"_Operation Grok," Chad grinned proudly._

"_Grok?" Troy asked, smirking at the name._

"_It stands for get rid of Kieran, I came up with it," His friend explained._

"_Figures," Troy muttered, "You and only you could come up with that."_

"_Do you wanna know about Operation Grok or not?" Chad questioned, slightly annoyed._

"_Ok, tell us about Operation Grok," He sighed, trying his best to stifle laughter as he repeated the plan name._

"_I'll explain," Taylor spoke up, "With Chad all increase stops after the name."_

_Troy nodded as Taylor began speaking._

"_We started by personally threatening him, that was just more or less testing the waters to see how far we could go before he'd snap," She explained, "When it didn't work we knew we'd have to be more extreme, so we got Kate to help."_

"_So, how did you get him to go?" Troy asked._

"_We told him we knew what he did and we'd tell the whole school if he didn't go, he didn't want to risk everyone finding out, but he wasn't scared off until we told him we'd already started telling people, then he left, he didn't know that we hadn't told anyone, he thought everyone knew, he was scared." She finished, "Gabi, you've gone pale, are you ok?"_

"_I'm fine," I replied honestly, "It just reminded me of something he did to me, that's all."_

_She nodded, obviously seeing that I was telling the truth._

End Flashback 

"You really think he'll still be affected by that?" I asked.

"I'm sure of it," Troy replied, "He doesn't know who of the old gang still lives around here, not unless Kate said something, he won't risk coming here without that information."

"Do you think I should talk to Bel about this? Visiting Kieran, I mean, there's no way she'll listen to dad," I pointed out.

"Then talk to her," He decided, "She needs to understand, I thought she'd remember anyway."

"We never told her," I admitted.

He nodded in reply as he sighed.


	9. Uninvited

**Ok, so I know this is unbelievably short but I'm still writing these as I go along and I had to finish my Geology coursework, and right now I have so many ideas for this I have to write daily or I'll forget them, besides, you people review so much you deserve daily chapters.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

"Isobel, just listen," I semi-demanded, trying to tell her about Kieran was harder than I thought.

"No, if you want to talk about some guy who tried to kill you then go find someone who'll listen, because personally I think mentioning attempted murder at your daughter's birthday party is pretty weird." My sister shot back.

"ISOBEL," I shouted, startling her, "Kieran is dangerous, you have no idea what you could have done, for all you know you could have convinced him to come back."

"I'm sure is wife would love that," She stated sarcastically.

"Stop being stupid Bel, if Kieran had it in him to try and kill me when we were fifteen, he won't take marriage seriously," I pointed out, "You don't know him like I do, like Kate does."

"She's right Bel," My friend backed me up, "My brother is dangerous, he doesn't care who he hurts, why else would I help the others to get rid of him?"

"I don't care if he's dangerous or not," Isobel insisted, "I wanted answers, he gave me answers, at least I know why this whole family is insane, and why Kevin faked his own death, I didn't expect to find out that you caused most of it but…"

"I caused it!" I cut her off, "He caused it by blackmailing dad when I was five, Kevin started it all, and Kieran added to the chain, I didn't cause any of it, nor did dad, why would you even say that? How can you possibly blame me for this? Are you determined to prove that you're a messed up kid? I swear, Carly acts older than you sometimes."

"Of course she does," Isobel snapped, "Because no one comes as near to perfection as your angelic sister Carly, just face it Gab, ever since she appeared, I've been nothing to you."

"You know that's not true," I argued, "I've always put you first, I've even put you before Tamsin and Kirra before, I shouldn't have but I did, if I knew you'd be so ungrateful I wouldn't have bothered."

"You shouldn't have," She scoffed, and was about to continue when mom came over.

"Girls, keep it down," She ordered both of us, "You really think fighting will solve the problem, the facts will solve these problems, so these are the facts, Isobel, you were an idiot, you should never have gone to Kieran, Gabi, doesn't treat Carly better than you, in fact she's always treated you better than Carly, envy doesn't suit you Bel, so get over it, Gabi, how many times does it have to be said, stop trying to be a parent to your sister, I get that your trying to stop her from going off the rails but that's my job, not yours, your meant to annoy her, not raise her, concentrate on your own kids, your family, they're what's important now."

"Mom, what's with the essay?" Isobel rudely quizzed in unison with my "Thanks mom."

"Isobel, that was rude," Kate pointed out, alerting me that she was still there.

"Duh," My sister smirked, "You and your brother are morons."

"Isobel," Mom warned.

"Mom," Isobel retaliated.

"This could go on for a while," I whispered to Kate, "Let's go."

She nodded me and followed me as I walked back into the yard, where the actual party was taking place.

As soon as we walked outside I noticed Carly sprint towards us, "Gabi, problem," She stated breathlessly as she reached me, and pointed over to the yard gate.

I looked over to where she was pointing, "What the hell is he doing here?"

"No idea, dad told me to stay away from him days ago, so I am," She rushed.

"Nice to know someone in this family knows how to listen," I half-smiled, "Where are the girls?"

"Chad's trying to teach Tam some jokes, she finds pulling his hair more interesting, can't say I blame her, they're bad jokes," Carly answered, "Kirra got restless and started screaming her head off so Evan took her for a walk."

I nodded, glad that both of the girls were occupied, I didn't want Kevin near them.

Slowly I made my way over to him, feeling Kate's presence behind me, but, obeying dad's orders, Carly had stayed back.

I hadn't directly spoken to Kevin since he was released, I hadn't needed to, but now I did, he crashed my daughter's birthday party, her fourth birthday party, and chances are, he has no good reason.

"What are you doing here?" I hissed when I reached him.

"Charlie and I thought we'd come to the party," Kevin grinned, holding out a present.

"What is it?" I asked harshly, "Cyanide?"

"Who would give a baby cyanide?" He quizzed, trying to seem innocent.

"You never know with you," Kate pointed out.

"Ah, Katie, Katie Sanchez," He smiled, "Wondered if I'd see you again, you were that small teenage girl last time I saw you."

"It's Katelyn Peterson now, if you'd done your research, you'd know that," She snapped in reply.

"Gabi, was Katie always this feisty?" He quizzed.

"Leave," I demanded, noticing the boy that had stepped out from behind him, guessing that this must be Charlie.

"Relax, I heard Bella bear would be here, I came to see her," He explained.

"She doesn't want to see you," I refused, "Just go, if you go now I won't tell Troy and dad you're here, you know what will happen if they find out."

"Where are those daughter's of yours?" He continued questioning as if they had something to do with him.

"Walking in the air," Katelyn suggested snappily. **(A/N: I'm listening to a song called walking in the air right now, that's where I got it from)**

"Katie, human's can't walk on air," He pointed out.

"Can you?" She quizzed, "You said human's can't, you're clearly not human, so can you?"

"Katie, you're what, twenty six now, you need to start growing up sweetie," He grinned.

I was ignoring the exchange, watching the boy behind him, his eyes were gazing into mine as intently as mine were to his, one thing was clear, he needed help, from what I didn't know, but he needed help.

"Ah, Gabriella, you remember Charlie?" Kevin asked when he saw me watching the child.

I nodded, still watching the boy; he flinched at his father's voice, the tension his fear wad creating was clear to me, if not to Kate and his father.

I glanced up at Kevin, feeling a new fury rising inside of me, what was he doing to the kid that was making him so scared? Why is he doing whatever it is he's doing? There's got to be a reason.

"Is he ok?" I finally asked, locking eyes with the boy again.

"He's fine," Kevin continued sounding optimistic.

Charlie subtly shook his head to show me that I was right in thinking he wasn't ok.

"He doesn't look fine," Katelyn decided, only giving Charlie a small glance.

"He is, he's just a little weak, no idea where he get's it from, his mother and I are both strong, but he's a weak little thing, aren't you Charlie?" Kevin replied.

The boy didn't answer, I wasn't sure he'd even heard, he was looking at anything but his father, at me and Kate, Carly, who was watching us, and at Tam and Chad, whom Kevin was yet to notice.

"You should leave," I told him, "You should leave, now."

"Well, you can't say I didn't try," Kevin sighed, "Come on, Charlie."

Instant fear was visible in the boy's eyes.

"I said you, Kevin," I pointed out, "You, not Charlie, Charlie stays, you leave."

"I'm not leaving him here unattended Gabi," He tried.

"He's staying," I insisted, "You're leaving, go now, I think Isobel should get to know Charlie, wait outside East High at around six, I'll get her to bring him to you."

He nodded and walked out of the gate, leaving Charlie behind.

He didn't have to know that I had no intention of giving Charlie back to him, the only intention I had when it came to Charlie, was to find out what was happening, and then possibly call the social services.

* * *

**Review!**

**This should have been up yesterday but there was some server problem and it wouldn't let me add it to the story, so todays chapter should be up in a few hours.**


	10. Informed

**In science today, we found a label that said Jam Jar on it and stuck it on Alex's back, then started a random conversation about Jam, he didn't notice until like, ten minutes before the end of the lesson, so hilarious, i not officially call him Jam Jar, it annoys him.**

* * *

**Today's chapter to go with yesterday's.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

"Am I going to see Isobel?" Charlie asked as soon as Kevin was out of sight.

"I wouldn't recommend it, she's in a bad mood," I explained, spotting Isobel in the corner of the yard, she still didn't seem happy, "You've met Carly though, right?"

He nodded and quickly followed me as I walked towards the back door, gesturing for Carly to follow.

"What's happening, Charlie?" I asked as soon as he sat down in the kitchen, "I know you're scared of him, what I don't know is why, tell me what he's doing."

"You won't believe me," The boy answered, "No one believes me."

"Charlie, we're talking about the man who tried to kill me, you'd be surprised as to what I'll believe about him, if he's been hurting you in any way, you have to tell me, I can help," I told him.

"I can't," He argued, "They'll hurt me worse if they find out I told someone."

"You honestly think I'd send you back to him after you tell me something like that?" I asked.

He shrugged, reminding me so much of a young Isobel.

"She's not stupid," Carly spoke up, "She won't send you back. She hates your dad, we all do."

"I don't hate him," Charlie defended, "And it's mom that puts him up to it, she says it's the only way I'll learn, and he agrees, and so does my grandfather, I trusted him, but now I trust no one, everyone lets you down, all you have is you."

"You can't do everything alone," I pointed out, "I guess I was lucky in a way, I've always had Mom, almost always had Bel, and now I have Troy and the girls, but there were times when I did feel alone, but there was always someone for me to go to whether I admitted it to myself or not, don't you have anyone like that?"

He shook his head, fixing his gaze on his shoes.

"Charlie?" I asked, "Would you tell Isobel?"

He looked up again, "No, she can't know, if she knows she'll never talk to him, and it'll be my fault and then it'll all be worse, please don't tell her."

"Ok, ok" I sighed, "I won't tell her."

He gave a weak smile and looked back down, getting through to him was going to be harder than I thought.

"Who's he?" I heard the familiar voice of my husband from the kitchen door.

"Promise you won't freak out?" I quizzed before answering.

"I'm not gonna like this, am I?" He asked in reply.

"Probably not," I admitted, "But you have to promise."

"Ok," He agreed, "I promise to try and not, as you put it, freak out."

"This is Charlie," I explained, "Kevin's son Charlie."

I saw a mix of anger and disbelief in his eyes as he said, "Gabi, can I talk to you in the hall for a sec?"

I nodded and followed him out; I'd expected this reaction.

"What the hell were you thinking, letting him in here?" He whispered angrily.

"What was I meant to do?" I answered in the same quiet tone, "I think his parents are hurting him, I couldn't just leave it, he's family."

"No, he's not," Troy shot back, "He's never been your family, how can you even think he is now."

"He's Bel's half-brother," I snapped, "As far as I'm concerned that makes him family, he needs me, and whether you like it or not I'm all he has right now, I can't just abandon him."

"How do you know he's telling the truth?" Troy asked, clearly knowing that I wasn't prepared for this question, I had no idea how I knew that Charlie was telling the truth, I just did.

I just shook my head and walked back into the kitchen, I couldn't deny that Charlie wasn't a blood relation, but he was to Bel, which made him family, Troy was just going to have to deal with it, however hard that was for him.

**Taylor's POV**

"Uncle Chad hair BIG," Tamsin exclaimed as I walked over to them.

"Tammy, what did I say?" He asked her.

"You said it good hair," She grinned, "I say it BIG hair."

"Do you think Troy knows that his daughter likes insulting me?" He questioned.

"Probably not," I answered, smiling at Tamsin.

"Where soapy?" The now four-year-old quizzed.

"She's annoying you're auntie Isobel," I told her.

She nodded and tried pulling Chad's hair out again.

"Tam, stop that," He complained.

She shook her head and turned to me, "Uncle Chad hair big?"

"That's right Tammy," I agreed.

"Hey," He continued complaining.

"It's true," I pointed out.

"You know you love it really," He smiled.

"Or do I?" I teased, and then added, "Then again, it is funny when Sophie and Tam mess it up, especially after, when you swear you're never going to let any child near your hair again, and then you do anyway."

"This time I won't, seriously, no kids near the fro, got it?" He quizzed.

"Sure," I grinned sarcastically, sticking to the truce we had made before the party, not even Gabi knew the full extent of our current problems, and right now, I didn't want her to find out, "Why are you hanging with Tamsin anyway? Shouldn't she be with her friends from daycare, It is her birthday party after all."

"What can I say?" He asked, "She loves me, can't stay away, been following me all day."

I shook my head as I smiled then addressed the four-year-old, "Why are you following uncle Chad, sweetie?"

"Can't find daddy," She told me, "Daddy went to find mommy so I annoy uncle Chad till daddy come back."

"Daddy's girl," Chad mouthed to me, "Just like Soph."

"Hey Tammy, shall we go and look for daddy?" I asked her.

She nodded as I picked her up, "I like daddy, he's my daddy, and he's Kirra's daddy, but he's not mommy's daddy, Grampy's mommy's daddy."

I smiled at the girl's explanation of her family; "You don't want to share daddy with mommy then?"

"No," The girl answered, "Because daddy and mommy fight, they fight about Kebin, Who Kebin?"

"He's a bad man," I replied, pondering what the child had just told me, "Is that all mommy and daddy fight about?"

"No," She told me, "They fight about me and about Kirra too, and about Uncle Chad because Mommy says he's being an idiot and daddy says he's not, and now they fight about lots and lots, but Auntie Isobel says that they don't want to fight, and that mommy gets scared because of Kebin, and daddy doesn't know what to do because he doesn't want mommy to be scared because he loves mommy, do you think he loves mommy?"

"Of course he does," I reassured, "He always has, for a long time."

"But what if he doesn't anymore?" She continued quizzing.

"He does, Tammy," I insisted, wondering where she had got all of these questions from, "Has someone been telling you he doesn't?"

"Sarah said so," Tamsin explained, "She look after me and Kirra at daycare and she say daddy never love mommy and that he love her instead."

"Daddy never loved anyone called Sarah," I told her, "He only ever loved your mommy."

"I love mommy too, and daddy," Tamsin replied.

"I know," I explained.

"DADDY," Tamsin squealed when Troy walked back into the yard.

He smiled as I handed her to him, "Happy birthday princess."

"Troy, I need to talk to you and Gabi later, about something Tam just told me, trust me, you'd want to know," I told him, watching him nod before heading back to Chad, for now, I could let them have their family moments, I could leave telling them for a few hours.

* * *

**Review!**

**Both of the chapters i put up today if you can, your input is appreciated.**


	11. Safe

**Ok, firstly, happy birthday to Vanessa, although technically for those of us in England, that was yesterday. **

**

* * *

**

**WARNING: Major fluff alert, you may gag to death; I hope you don't, but it could happen. **

**

* * *

**

**Troy's POV**

"Daddy, Mommy's asleep," Tamsin giggled from her spot on the floor.

"Tam," I whispered, knowing she'd spoken a bit too loud, "How about we play the quiet game?"

"How do you play that?" She quizzed, still loud.

"You have to be really really quiet," I explained, "Can you do that?"

She nodded and then whispered, "I'm gonna beat you daddy."

"Of course you will," I agreed.

She went back to flicking through the pages of the picture book that was in front of her, I looked at the clock on the wall, just gone six thirty; Tam should be in bed soon.

"Daddy, is mommy sick again?" Tamsin whispered to me after a few minutes.

"No sweetie, she's just tired," I answered, looking down at my sleeping wife, her head resting comfortably on my shoulder.

"Why?" Tamsin asked.

"It's been a long day," I replied.

"But daddy, it was the same as all the other days, it wasn't longer," The child pointed out, so clearly confused by my choice of words.

"It was just harder than most," I continued.

"Is it because Uncle Chad and Auntie Taylor were fighting again?" Tamsin quizzed innocently.

"No," I denied, knowing I was lying, Gabi was always trying to sort out their problems for them, no matter how many times I tried to stop her.

"Then is it because you and mommy were fighting?" She questioned.

"You heard that?" I replied, shocked and a little ashamed that she knew we'd been fighting.

"You fight about boy that Auntie Isobel know called Charlie," Tamsin nodded, "And you fight about Sarah too, why don't mommy like Sarah?"

"Sarah wasn't very nice to me or mommy," I told her.

"She's nice to me," Tamsin exclaimed in disbelief.

"I know," I sighed, watching her, "But nobody is nice to everyone."

"Why?" Tamsin asked.

"I don't know Tam," I admitted, "anyway, it's your bed time missy."

"No," Tamsin refused, "You can't make me, and you can't carry me to bed because if you move then you'll wake mommy up, and then she'll shout and she won't be very happy."

"Tammy," I warned, knowing she was probably right.

"No," She continued refusing, "No sleep."

"Tamsin," I repeated, "Bed now!"

"NO," She screamed in defiance.

I felt Gabriella fidget as she woke up; she gazed up at me, then at Tamsin.

"Tammy, why are you shouting?" She asked calmly.

"I don't wanna go to bed," Tamsin started arguing.

"Tamsin, it's already gone bedtime," I tried explaining in my wife's calm tone.

"I don't wanna go to bed," She repeated in protest.

"Tamsin, if daddy says it's time for bed, it's time for bed," Gabriella reasoned.

Tamsin shook her head, "No, daddy won't sing to me, you sing to me at bedtime mommy."

"I can sing to you Tammy, but only if you go to bed real fast," Gabriella told her.

It was amazing how quick Tamsin jumped up and ran upstairs.

"How did you do that?" I quizzed.

"I never used to be that good you know," She pointed out.

"Liar," I accused, "You must be, because if you got better at something it mean's you weren't always perfect, and everybody knows you were born perfect."

"MOMMY," Tamsin called from upstairs.

"I may be perfect," She smiled, standing up, "But if she wakes me up like that again your life won't be worth living,"

Her giggles gave away her joke as she followed Tamsin up the stairs.

**Carly's POV**

"Michael Warner," I stated as I opened the front door, "And I thought we'd seen the last of you."

"Nice to see you too, Rissa," He replied.

"What are you doing here?" I quizzed, being purposely rude.

"I'm taking Bel out tonight," He explained, walking straight past me and into the house.

"No can do," I smirked, "Bel's grounded, but then what do you expect, she did fly to Washington and back on her own."

"She was grounded until yesterday, rissa, we're going out tonight," He continued.

"You know I hate it when you call me rissa?" I questioned.

"It's your name," He replied, "In a way."

"My name is Carly, not rissa," I stated, "And before you start I know you got it from my middle name, but barely anyone is addressed by the middle name."

"BEL, YOU HERE?" He called up the stairs after giving me a look that told me I was annoying him.

"I'm just finding my shoes," She called back.

"Can I watch?" He quizzed.

"Is Carly down there?" She asked.

"Yes," He answered.

"Then no, you can hang with her for a while," Isobel told him.

I turned to him, grinning slyly, he didn't have to know that this was something that Isobel and I had devised earlier, he didn't know that me annoying him was planned, more importantly, he didn't need to know.

"What are you thinking?" He asked suspiciously.

"I'm just dreaming of all the horrible thing's I'm gonna do to you when you hurt Bel again," I told him cheerfully, "But I guess that will be nothing compared to what Evan will do to you if he finds out."

"You're an evil little girl," He answered.

"I know," I admitted, "Couldn't be prouder of it, everyone says I get it off of Gabi, she's pretty evil to her husband, forever teasing him, only difference is, I'm worse."

"Your sister Gabi, right?" he questioned.

"No," I sarcastically replied, "My cat, Gabi. Of course my sister Gabi you moron."

"Am I ever gonna meet her?" He quizzed, ignoring my sarcasm.

"Why would she wanna meet you?" I shot back.

"I'm her sister's boyfriend," he decided.

"Technically not, you're on probation." I informed him.

"You know, Bel once told me that Gabi was married to The Troy Bolton, I mean, come on, as if, does she always lie about your family?" He tried a kind approach.

"That's not a lie," I told him, "Gabi is married to Troy Bolton, their daughter's, Tamsin and Kirra, are mine, Bel's and Evan's nieces."

"So that actually wasn't a lie?" He questioned.

"That wasn't a lie," I confirmed, "Neither of them would want to meet you anyway."

"Why wouldn't they?" he sighed, "I'm the best basketball player East High has, you should know that, you cheer for me enough."

"Sadly, that's what being a cheerleader involves" I replied, "How long will you and Bel be out?"

"Couple of hours, give or take," He told me, "Why?"

"I have to have something to tell Mom when she asks, she never asks Bel, because Bel's evasive, she asks me instead, when you leave, I need something to say, duh," I pointed out.

"Right," He nodded as Isobel walked down the stairs.

"You need to be back by ten," I reminded her as I walked back into the lounge.

**Taylor's POV**

"Do you think we scared them off?" I finally asked Chad.

"What, Troy and Gabi? No." He answered quickly.

"We've never fought like that before," I reminded him, "What if they hate us for fighting in front of the girls, we should never have invited them round after the party, we should have known this would happen."

"They won't hate us," He pointed out, "We're like family to them, and everyone fights."

"Not everyone fights in front of their friends kids," I told him.

"We're gonna have another fight in a minute if you don't shut up about this," He warned only half-seriously.

"What happened to us?" I asked, "When did we become so secretive?"

"When did we? Or when did I?" I quizzed.

I didn't answer, just looked down at my hands.

"Tay, you have to trust me on this, I don't want to tell you yet, I can't tell you yet, and I guess that's partly because I'm not ready to accept it myself, and if I tell you, it'll be like I'm accepting it." He continued.

"Accepting what?" I asked.

"It's not important right now," He tried, "I'll tell you when I'm ready."

"When will that be?" I questioned.

"I'm not sure," He explained, "But I know it's not now."

I had no idea what he was actually hiding from me, but for now, knowing that he would tell me when he was ready was enough, although not knowing was daunting in itself, I could deal until he was ready.

"I'll tell you," He insisted, obviously reading my facial expression, "Just not yet."

I nodded in reply and once again picked up the book I was reading, I knew I wouldn't be able to concentrate on it, but I could at least try, besides, I needed something to stop me thinking about whatever it was Chad wasn't telling me anyway.

**No One's POV**

"You stupid idiot," Suzanne screamed at the top of her voice, "How could you just leave him? She had no intention of giving him back, he's probably told her everything by now, and you'll have lost both of your children, are you happy with yourself?"

"Calm down," Kevin tried, "I know where he is, I'll just go and get him tomorrow,"

Kevin knew that Charlie would be long gone from Gabriella's home, there was no way she would have kept him there, he couldn't even guarantee that anyone would be there at all, but he had to get Charlie back, for his own safety he needed to get the boy back.

"You better get him," Suzanne threatened, "If you don't the plan will be ruined, and you'll never see Charlie again, let alone your precious daughter."

"Leave Isobel out of this," he stated, suddenly going into defensive mode, "She's nothing to do with you."

"Think about it Kevin," Suzanne ordered, "Charlie could tell Isobel everything, she'll hate you then you know, almost as much as he hates the both of us."

"He won't tell her," Kevin answered surely, "He knows what he'll get if he does anything he knows I won't like, he won't tell Isobel."

"But will he tell Gabriella?" Suzanne asked, "Because if he tells her, she'll tell Isobel, Kevin, Charlie knows why you were in prison, he knows you tried to kill her, he searched it on the Internet at school."

"He won't tell Gabriella," Kevin tried, although he knew that his son would, his only instruction was not to tell Isobel, he'd given the boy no reason to not tell Gabriella.

"He better not," Suzanne fumed, throwing a picture frame onto the floor, "I'll lock the ungrateful little brat in his room for a week if he does, see how he likes that, that'll teach him to keep his nose out of our business."

**Charlie's POV**

"So, Charlie," The strange woman addressed me, "How is everything?"

"Good, now, I guess," I stuttered.

"Very well," She nodded, making her earrings jangle, "If you don't mind me asking, how do you know my niece?"

"She's my sister's sister," I tried explaining, then realised that the woman probably wouldn't understand that certain explanation, "I'm Isobel's half-brother because we have the same dad, Gabriella has the same mom as Isobel, that's how I know her."

The woman nodded, "Well, I'm Gabriella's Aunt Anita, it's nice to meet you, Charlie."

She held out a hand, which I gladly shook, she may seem crazy, but at least she's nice, all I'd ever wanted was a nice parent, someone I could trust, talk to, but up until now I'd had no one.

"My daughter Tia is just upstairs, she shouldn't disturb you, she's fourteen herself, so she's in the stroppy teenager phase that I remember so well," Anita ranted, "My other children have left home, well, except for Lola, I call her Lols, but Lola's out a lot, she's kind of like a lodger really, only comes home to eat and sleep."

I let out a small fake laugh to amuse the strange woman, she clearly thought her own little joke was funny, whether I could understand it or not, but it didn't matter, for now at least, I'm safe.

* * *

**Wow, longsomeness (i make up a lot of words, just smile and nod, it's easier)**

**Who's excited about christmas?**

**I know i am, i keep singing christmas songs, it's annoying my dad, so funny.**

**Anyways, Review!!!**


	12. Stop

**Disclaimer: I do not own High school musical, Bugsy Malone or Hannah Montana, I do, however, own the glass of orange juice that I have right now. **

* * *

**Sorry I didn't update yesterday or Sunday, I didn't notice how much homework I had until around one on Sunday, and I didn't finish till around seven, which is too late for me to start writing a chapter, which is what I would have had to do because I am still behind on this story.**

* * *

**This chapter would have been up yesterday, but as I was writing it my dad lost the internet (typical).**

* * *

**I'm not writing a chapter for today because I'm in Bugsy Malone tonight (playing Dandy Dan), so I will be onstage during my writing time, which I'm surprisingly not nervous about, even though are class are still bad, it's better than the terrible that they were this morning.**

* * *

**No one's POV**

It's common knowledge that besides the obvious necessities like food and water, all children need to grow up happy is a secure and loving home.

Isobel knew that so far her brother hadn't had that luxury, but in a way, neither had she, her childhood was far from secure, with her biological father leaving and returning twice now, her sister's hysterical behaviour eight years ago, the continuous moving, her life had been far from secure, that, she reasoned, must have been why she understood Charlie so well, it was why she wanted to help him, but with her sister keeping her brother's whereabouts a secret from even her, helping him was a task proving difficult.

**Isobel's POV**

"Tell me where he is!" I demanded once again.

"I can't," my sister answered again, "I made a promise that I'd keep him safe, If Kevin finds out that you know where he is, he could come for you again, so I can't tell you, for your safety and for Charlie's safety."

"Why would I tell Kevin anything?" I argued.

"Bel, please, drop it," She replied, "I'm not telling you."

"But, he's my brother," I complained, "he'd want me to know."

"Isobel, go home," She told me, "I'm not going to tell you, just go home."

"Isbel go home," Kirra chimed happily in the background.

"Yes, sweetie Isobel's going home," Gabriella agreed.

"Isbel go home, Isbel go home, Isbel go home," Kirra started singing in an almost undistinguishable way.

My sister was smiling at her daughter, probably thinking it was the sweetest thing in the world, I found it just plain annoying.

**Gabriella's POV**

I jumped as Isobel slammed the front door behind her, I didn't want to hide her brother from her, but I didn't have much choice, they're safety had to come first, it was just better for everyone if she didn't know.

"Isbel go home?" Kirra repeated the lyrics of her short song as a question.

"Yeah, Isobel's gone home," I agreed.

"Apple," She exclaimed, holding out a piece of the fruit to me.

"You eat it for mommy," I told her.

She nodded and started trying to balance the piece of fruit on her nose.

"Kirra, don't do that," I tried.

"Apple," She repeated, holding it out to me again.

This time I just took it, knowing she wasn't going to eat it.

"Mommy, Hannah not on anymore," Tamsin told me as she entered the kitchen.

"Hannah?" I quizzed, knowing I should really know what she's talking about.

"Hannah that's on the telly, she said sorry to her friend and it finished," Tamsin explained.

"You mean Hannah Montana?" I questioned, recalling all the times I watched that with Isobel when she was younger.

Tamsin nodded when I said the name and looked over at her sister, "Mommy, Kirra make a mess."

"No," Kirra refused, then held another piece of apple to Tamsin, "Apple!"

Tamsin eyed the piece of fruit before turning back to me, "Ice-cream,"

"After dinner," I told her.

"NO, NOW," She shouted, knowing that I was more likely to give her what she wants if she shouted.

"After dinner, Tamsin," I insisted.

"NOW," She shouted again, not seeing Troy appear in the door behind her.

"Tamsin, no ice-cream until after dinner," I continued.

"ICE-CREAM NOW," She demanded.

"You carry on like that and they'll be no ice-cream at all," Troy spoke from behind her.

"Daddy, apple!" Kirra exclaimed, holding out yet another piece to him.

He ignored her, continuing to watch Tamsin, probably not thinking about his behaviour, all Kirra wanted was his attention, something that Tamsin always seemed to have nowadays.

Tamsin was scowling at him, trying her best to weaken him.

"Daddy, apple," Kirra repeated in a near scream.

"Quiet, Kirra," He snapped.

"It's all about Tamsin with you, isn't it?" I spoke with sudden hostility, "She only wanted you to acknowledge her, she's your daughter to, or did you forget that?"

I scooped a now crying Kirra up into my arms and carried her out of the room, knowing that he was following me.

"I was backing you up in there," He tried reasoning, "Tam was walking all over you, if you'd have given her the ice-cream she would've thought…"

"You know what Kirra will think?" I interrupted, "When she's older and you're still paying more attention to Tamsin than her, she's going to think that you don't care, and these will be the moments she remembers, the moments where you were too busy with Tamsin to even notice her."

"Gabi, calm down," He tried as I felt Tamsin tugging at my leg.

I crouched to her level, ignoring him, "What is it?" I asked calmly.

"Me not want you and daddy to fight," She told me, "I don't like it, you tell me not fight so you can't."

I nodded, knowing that we had to stop fighting in front of them; it could only ever hurt them.

"Auntie Carly no like fights," Tamsin spoke, nodding to emphasise her words, "She say they waste of time."

"She's right," I agreed, glancing up at my husband, "We shouldn't fight around them."

"We shouldn't fight at all," He corrected.

I nodded, noticing for the first time that Kirra had fallen asleep, her head resting on my shoulder.

"I'll take her up," He smiled as I stood up, taking her off of me and carrying her upstairs.

"Kirra tired," Tamsin stated, fixing her eyes on the TV again.

I smiled down at her, surprised that she'd dropped her battle for ice-cream so soon, maybe fighting affects her more than I thought.

* * *

**ahhhh, it's short, i would add more, but i have to be back at school for Bugsy in less than an hour, and i have to sort out food, and get my costume on, and make sure i have all my props before i leave.**

**REVIEW!!!!!**


	13. Arrival

**Bugsy went well, better than we expected, not really much to say about that.**

* * *

**OMG IT'S NEARLY CHRISTMAS, and I have a sponsored silence tomorrow; Ahhhhhhhh, silence and me do not go so it should be interesting.**

* * *

**Anyways, onto the story, that's right, I'm not going to ramble today.**

* * *

**Troy's POV**

I grinned as I watched her gazing around the room in awe.

"What?" She asked when she caught my eye.

"You seem overwhelmed," I commented.

She glanced around again, "It's just so…so shiny."

I laughed at her choice of words, "Shiny?"

"It reminds me of Christmas," She told me, "The only things missing are the presents."

"Some Christmas," I smirked, "The girls wouldn't agree if there was no presents."

"Would anyone?" She pointed out, "Nobody I know would."

"True," I agreed, leading her over to our friends as I spotted them, "Tell me again why you decided to have this party in the evening," I spoke as we reached them.

"We figured that our anniversary should be about us, it can't be about us if the kids are around and you know Soph, she'd have created havoc if we left her with our neighbours all day, it's better if she's half-asleep when we leave," Chad explained.

"You made yourself sound smart there," I told him.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that," He answered.

"Men," Taylor jokily sighed, "Troy, I'm going to steal your wife now, you two talk about basketball or whatever you talk about when we're not around."

"Please, don't," Chad half-begged, "All he ever does is talk about his amazingly perfect family."

"Really?" Gabriella grinned, "in that case, we'll definitely leave."

Taylor and Gabriella quickly rushed away as I turned to my friend.

"Did you have to tell her that?" I quizzed.

"Nope, didn't have to, you insulted me, I had to get you back somehow," He decided.

"You're an embarrassment, I'm going to call Isobel," I told him.

"Why?" He stupidly asked.

"She's watching the girls tonight," I explained, knowing that he already knew that.

**Gabriella's POV**

"So, a little birdie told me that you two almost had another fight," Taylor started.

"Since when was Tamsin a bird?" I tried changing the subject.

"About?" She continued, ignoring my attempt.

"The important word is nearly," I told her, "nearly means didn't."

"Gabi, stop being evasive," She complained, "I'm your best friend, tell me."

I sighed and waited a few seconds before relenting, "The girls, but it didn't happen."

She nodded, deciding not to push me on it, which I was glad for.

"Why's it so shiny in here?" I suddenly asked.

"Random much?" She giggled, " Alicia wanted to help with the decorations, I wouldn't have agreed if I knew that shiny was apparently in."

"Why would you agree to that anyway?" I quizzed.

"I wanted her to shut up," She explained, "Letting her do something was the only way."

I nodded, "So, who else from high school is coming?" I asked curiously, wanting to know how many people I'd actually know.

"Kelsi and Jason for sure," Taylor replied, "Zeke said he'd come if he could get Sharpay to come, Ryan didn't get back to us, neither did Martha, not really sure about anyone else, although Katelyn said she wouldn't miss it for the world, yeah, she actually said that."

"Typical Kate," I pointed out, glancing over at our husbands, "We're being talked about."

Taylor followed my gaze, noticing that they were watching us.

I smiled over at Troy as our eyes met, questioning him with my gaze, he nodded in reply, yep, they were definitely talking about us.

* * *

**I know it's short, but I'm tired, and I just twisted my bad ankle, so I need to go and rest it.**

**OMG, sponsored silence tomorrow at school!!! That's gonna be interesting.**


	14. Gossip

**The sponsored silence was random, seriously random, we were writing notes all day, if you check the quotes of the week on my site you'll find one down for this week. Don't you think sponsored silences are insulting; it's like your being paid to shut up!!!!**

* * *

**Ahhh, this new screen makes word look weird, it's going to take some getting used to, but I can live with it.**

* * *

**I only have a half-day at school tomorrow, then I finish for the hols, my sis finished today, she keeps laughing that she finished before me, but the jokes on her, because my holiday is a day and a half longer than hers without including the weekend, she goes back on the first Thursday in Jan, I got back the following Monday, it's three and a half days longer if you include the weekend, but I'm not, so a day and a half.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

"You're here!" I heard Katelyn scream from behind me, "Awesome,"

"Kate, you're twenty six, are you ever going to grow up?" I quizzed in reply.

"Not planning to," She explained, "Adults are boring, and they have parties at this time that kids can't come to,"

"Then why are you here?" I grinned, "If the kids can't come to them."

"I was escorted," She jokily bragged as Josh walked through the doors of the hall, "You didn't think I'd be allowed to come alone!"

"Good point," I agreed.

"Anyways, this is Tay's party, so, congrats, five years, who would've thought," Katelyn smiled, turning to Taylor.

"Definitely not you," I smirked, "You never think."

"Tay she's insulting me," Katelyn stated.

"I can hear that," Taylor answered.

"We should do something about that, she can't just go round insulting people," Katelyn decided.

"You always did," I pointed out, "When you weren't high that is."

"I'm a troubled teen," Katelyn shot back, "So what, there's plenty of them, Tam promised me she'd be one too, you know, to test you, has to be done."

"Kate, Tam's four, she won't remember anything she agrees to at her age by the time she hits her teens," I pointed out, "besides, you're not a troubled teen, you acted like an adult when you faced Kevin."

"She might," Taylor corrected, ignoring my later comment "If she remembers all the fights you and Troy have she might remember the promise she made Kate."

"Fights?" Katelyn questioned, "What fights? Why do I not know about this?"

I swear, sometimes I could kill Taylor, there's no way Katelyn will let this drop, Katelyn doesn't drop things, she rants about them, then waits a few weeks, and rants about them more.

"It's not that bad," I tried.

"Any row's are bad Gab," Katelyn answered.

"Fighting's healthy," I argued, "Why are we talking about this at an anniversary part anyway?"

"Tay don't mind," Katelyn decided, "Do ya Tay?"

"No," She answered as I shot her an annoyed look.

"I do," I sighed, "My marriage is none of your business, these fights are none of your business, they are between me and Troy, we can sort them without you, you're not helping, if anything you're making them worse."

**Troy's POV**

"Go rescue your wife," Chad suddenly stated, gesturing over to the other side of the room.

I looked over to the spot he had pointed out, Gabi looked agitated, Katelyn was there, not a good combination.

"Thanks," I answered, making my way over to them.

"You stressing her out again, Kate?" I asked when I got there.

"Would I?" She quizzed in mock annoyance.

"Yes," I replied, not really wanting to get into some stupid skit with her, "Gabi, can I ask you something?"

She nodded as I led her away.

"You don't really have anything to ask me, do you?" She pointed out.

"No," I confirmed, "You looked like you needed rescuing.

"I did," She admitted, "Tam's been telling Taylor about our fights, Taylor let it slip to Katelyn and now they won't shut up about it."

"Did you tell them it's got nothing to do with them?" I asked.

"Yes, they wouldn't listen," She sighed as she rested her head on my shoulder, "Do you ever feel like we're too close to our friends?"

"Sometimes," I told her, "but dealing with it is better than pushing them way."

She nodded in agreement, "It's just like, every time we arrange for my parents or someone to babysit, one of them always wants one of us, we never get any alone time anymore."

"So we need a new rule," I stated, "No answering phones when the kids aren't home."

"I second that," She grinned,.

**Taylor's POV**

"They don't look like they're fighting," Katelyn pointed out moments after Gabriella had left.

"It's not all the time," I reminded her.

"It doesn't look like it's any of the time," She argued.

"According to Tam it's once or twice a week," I explained, "which is probably why we never see them fighting, they're not now because it's a party, fighting here would be rude."

Katelyn nodded, still watching the pair, "They look happy to me."

"They are," I agreed, "Most of the time, but not all of the time."

"No one's happy all of the time" Katelyn pointed out.

"We are," Josh argued, reminding us that he was still there, and had been since just before Gabi left.

"Should we be worried?" Katelyn asked me, ignoring his comment, "Neither of them has mentioned divorce, right?"

"No mention of divorce as yet," I relented, "but would she even tell us, she can be secretive about these things, she didn't tell us they were engaged until five weeks after he proposed."

"We were in the middle of exams Tay, Gabi had just finished hers, she didn't want to distract us," Katelyn reasoned, "besides, do they look like a couple on the verge of divorce?"

"No," I sighed, "but it doesn't mean they're not."

"No offence," Josh spoke up, "but why are you discussing your friends marriage when she made it clear that she doesn't want you to get involved?"

"It's what friends do, sweetie, you wouldn't understand," Katelyn shushed him.

"Don't friends respect each others wishes?" He pointed out, "She says it's nothing, you should really believe her, or at least accept that she doesn't want to talk about it."

"She needs to talk about it," I tried.

"Yeah, she does, she needs to talk to Troy about it, but not you, if she wanted you to know she'd tell you, but she hasn't, so why get involved?" Josh continued.

"We have to," Katelyn argued.

"Why?" He asked, "because you want gossip, friends don't want gossip on friends, and there's not really much you can do unless she directly asks you to get involved, which she hasn't, so be her friends and drop it."

He walked past us, towards the door, leaving us to think about his words as we turned and saw Zeke and Sharpay standing just inside the entrance.

* * *

**I may update tomorrow, if not, this is the last one until Sunday, there will be no chapter on Christmas day, that day is reserved solely for my little sister, she still believes in Santa so it's important to her, there may be one on boxing day, not sure about new year yet.**


	15. Pain

**Next chapter, yep, that's right, no rant, you must be so sad.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

"Is that?…" I started, glancing towards the entrance of the hall.

"I think so," Troy answered, following my gaze.

"When was the last time we saw her?" I quizzed.

"Three years ago, at the five year reunion, we'd just finished college," He answered, "I can't believe she's here, did Taylor tell you she was coming?"

"Taylor said Zeke was trying to get her to come, I didn't think he'd actually manage it, I don't think she see's many people from high school now, except Ryan and Zeke obviously."

"Was she invited?" Asked a voice from behind us.

"He was," I explained, "it was obvious she'd come with him if he came, but I didn't think they would, it's a surprise for sure, I don't know if it's a good surprise or not though, can you keep and eye on her, Leesh?"

"Didn't think she was ever one of Tay's friends," Alicia replied, "Yeah, I'll watch her, not as if I have anything better to do, I don't think I can make this room shinier."

I sighed as I heard Alicia walk away, still watching the couple by the door, "She's coming over," I whispered as she started approaching.

"This can't be good," Troy commented.

"Hey guys," She grinned as she reached us.

"Um…Hi, Sharpay," I replied, feeling Troy's protective arm around my waist.

"How's things?" She quizzed as Zeke came up behind her.

"Good," I told her, "Everything's good."

"How's that kid you guys have, I remember you mentioning you had a kid at the reunion, not so small now I'm guessing," She gushed.

"Tammy's good, four now," I replied, "Trouble of course but what four year old isn't."

"Exactly," Sharpay agreed, still smiling, "Anything new in the last three years? Not that we caught up at the reunion or anything it's just good to know what my old classmates are up to."

"We have another kid now," Troy blurted out, "She's not as much trouble as Tammy yet, but I think she will be."

"Oh, I know about that," Sharpay grinned, "I watched that interview on TV, the one where you were waxing lyrical about them, it was sweet."

"Well, basketball does come second to them and there were people who believed that for me nothing would ever come before basketball," He explained.

"But you found a balance between home and work, right, no balance would be bad," Zeke interrupted.

"Yeah, I found a balance," Troy answered, "It's not an equal balance though, home holds more than double the importance of work."

"That sounds weird from you," Zeke decided as my cell rang.

I glanced at it as I took it out of my purse.

"I gotta take this," I told the group, walking a few steps back as I answered, immediately hearing crying in the background, "Carls,"

"We have a problem," My sister answered.

"What?" I asked, suddenly worried.

"Mom and Dad are out, Evan's god knows where, me and Isobel are here alone with the girls and Kevin's at the door demanding to see Charlie, he doesn't believe either of us when we tell him we have no idea where Charlie is…" She began explaining.

"You opened the door!" I exclaimed.

"No, we're shouting through the door, and the shouting woke Kirra up and she won't settle, Tamsin won't let us near her, she says she won't let the bad man hurt he sister and the bad man wants me and Bel so she won't let us near Kirra" Carly finished.

"We're on our way," I told her hanging up the phone.

"Everything ok?" Troy quizzed as I walked back over to them.

"No, we have to go," I told him.

"That bad?" He asked.

"Yes," I stated, "He's there, he's there and he's harassing them, he won't leave and he's after Bel and Carls, Tammy won't let them near Kirra, and it's because he's there, they don't know what to do and truthfully neither do I but my parents and Evan aren't home, they're alone, they need us there, we have to leave, now."

"Gabi, you do realise we're outside already?" He quizzed, trying to keep me calm.

I hadn't realised that we'd been walking speedily as I'd been ranting, and sure enough, we were nearing the car.

"I just need to get there." I sighed.

He nodded, opening the car door.

**Carly's POV**

"We're telling the truth, we don't know where Charlie is, Gabi won't say," I shouted through the front door once again, knowing that he wouldn't believe me.

"I don't like liars, kid, didn't Isobel tell you I don't like liars," He replied.

I glanced back at my stepsister, momentarily listening to her attempts to coax our niece away from her sister so she could go and check on her.

"Come on Tammy, come out for Auntie Isobel," She tried.

"NO," Came the four-year-olds resistant shout, "Bad man hurt Kirra if you come,"

"He's not going to go near Kirra," Isobel continued, "He's not even in the house, look."

"NO," The girl answered, "Only me and mommy and daddy come near Kirra."

"Tammy, I need to know if Kirra's ok, I promised mommy I'd look after you, can you let me see if she's ok, I won't touch her and I'll come straight back here, I promise, you can trust me, you know that," Isobel continued.

"NO," Tamsin argued, "Daddy, say never trust anyone who say trust me, and bad man want you, so go, and me keep Kirra safe until mommy and daddy come."

"I can't just leave you Tammy, mommy wouldn't be very happy if I did," Isobel tried reasoning.

"Kirra stay with me, and you go away," Tamsin carried on arguing, slamming the door in Isobel's face.

"TAMSIN SARAH BETHANY BOLTON THAT WAS NOT NICE," Isobel shouted.

"DON'T CARE," Came the child's resilient reply.

"When's Gabi getting here?" Isobel asked me, turning her attention from the door, clearly figuring that the girls were safe in there for now.

"She said she's on her way now," I explained, "Do you think he's still there, it's been quiet for a while."

"He's still there," Isobel told me, "He does that, he wants you to open the door and check so he can get in, we can't let him get in Carly, the girls are here, Gabi would kill us, in fact she'd probably skin us alive, then, when we're dead have us drawn and quartered."

"Pleasant," I commented, grimacing.

"I'm gonna try calling Evan again," Isobel told me, "Keep an eye out it case the girls reappear, and no matter what, do not open the front door."

I nodded as she walked upstairs, alternating my attention from the front door to the lounge door.

"Look, kid, just open the door and I'll take Charlie and go," Kevin negotiated from the other side of the door.

"Charlie's not here," I truthfully told him.

"I don't believe you," He shot back, "Your whole family are liars and cheats…"

"At least we're not attempted murderers," I replied, knowing I shouldn't have but too annoyed to care.

"You know nothing," He tried, hitting the front door again.

"I know a hell of a lot more than you, just get lost Kevin, you're not wanted here," I argued.

"I'm not leaving without my son," He insisted.

"He's not here," I repeated, "I don't know where he is, I don't know any more possible way's I could tell you that to help you get it through your thick head."

"Where's Isobel?" He asked, "I don't want to talk to you, you insolent little brat."

"Isobel doesn't want to talk to you," I replied, "Why would she? You're no good to her, you've done nothing but cause pain, and when she's finally happy, you come back and cause more pain, any half decent father would have stayed away."

He banged the door once again, shouting something incoherently.

"Still no answer from Evan," Isobel told me as she came back down the stairs, "But I called Gabi again, they're near now, and I got through to dad, they're on their way too."

"Finally," I sighed, trying not to let on how scared I actually was.

"We'll be fine, Carls," Isobel tried reassuring, but her fear was also evident, and right at this moment we were alone.

"Forget about us," I decided, "We're not important right now, only Tamsin and Kirra are important right now, we have to protect them."

Isobel nodded in agreement, "Try getting Tam to let you near, I'll watch this door."

I gave a weak, unconvincing smile as I walked to the lounge door, "Tammy, are you ok? Can you let me come and check? To stop mommy worrying."

I heard shuffling from behind the door but it didn't open.

"I ok," Came Tamsin's voice, "Kirra still crying but she ok too, you can't come in because bad man here, tell mommy that we ok and she not worry."

I sighed, knowing that arguing with her would just cause her to shout and retaliate like she had done minutes earlier with Isobel, I didn't want to risk getting her angry or worrying her more.

"Tammy, I'll be right out here if you need anything, ok?" I asked.

"Yeah," She simply answered after a few seconds, "but we be ok, no worry."

I jumped as Kevin shouted again from outside, this time, neither of us answered; like it was telepathically agreed or something.

* * *

**This may be the last chapter I put up before Christmas day, depends how I feel on Christmas Eve, it can be busy here sometimes, if not there will probably be one more.**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!**


	16. Careless

**Hey you get some random psychobabble from me today, OMG I JUST SAW THE GOLDEN COMPASS, it's awesome, seriously, and no, nobody kills god in it like that e-mail said, infact, if you really think about it, it's the complete opposite, me and my dad figured that the daemons are the faith, and the evil freaks were trying to take the daemons (faith) away from children, and Lyra stopped them.**

* * *

**Ok so bad news: I'm thinking about maybe ending a story soon, probably getting through, it's not that I don't enjoy writing it or because of writers block, I have tons of ideas for both stories right now.**

**Good news: this is because I have an idea for another story and am not sure if I could handle writing three at a time, although I could keep all three going and alternate, like concentrate on one for a week, then another for the next week etc. tell me what you think.**

* * *

**Ok, so this chapter is short, because it feels right to end it where I did, and I don't really want to ruin it, so don't murder me over it, because murder is illegal, and you would go to prison, and I'm being over-dramatic again, you get used to it.**

* * *

**Ahhhhhhhh, I so need to make a banner for this story, I made one for 2016: A charmed future (my charmed story, clearly), but I'm too lazy to make them for my other stories, one day maybe, I will stop being so lazy and actually make them for all of my stories (not likely).**

* * *

**Nobody's POV**

Those who knew Troy Bolton knew that even attempting to harm any member of his family would come to a very sticky end, not by his hands of course, but he had his ways, as it was his daughters and wife weren't the only people he considered his family, his parents, his in-laws and friends were among that list.

Kevin Montez had been warned once, he'd decided to ignore that warning, now he was a marked man, his daughter had already made it clear that she'd never forgive him for his treatment of her half-sister, a point she emphasised by taking her step-father's name at the age of twelve, but Kevin still refused to give up, this, Isobel believed, may have been because he had some hidden desire to die, she wasn't sure whether this would or would not be a bad thing, she'd be free from him if he did, as would Charlie, but then she'd never know the full story, she'd never know what possessed him to attempt to kill her sister all those years ago, the girl he so clearly resented from the day he walked back into their lives eight years ago, the girl he so clearly blamed for the demise of his "perfect family unit", Isobel had accepted a while ago that even though he sister was twenty six now, and had children of her own, she was still no more than a child, her vulnerability over the past few weeks had proved that, even if she had managed to stand up for herself once or twice, she was still the scared seventeen year old of nine years ago.

It wasn't the fear that Kevin caused that angered Isobel's step-father and brother-in-law, it was his persistence, the persistence that kept him near stalking his daughter and her family, the persistence that drove him to find Charlie, threatening Carly in the process, Kevin didn't care that verbally threatening the youngest of his former step-daughter's siblings would make his own daughter resent his existence even more than she previously had, all Kevin wanted now was the upper hand, he wanted something over the family, something that would make Isobel talk to him, something that would make her lead him to Charlie, something Isobel would never do.

**Isobel's POV**

"Bella, please, open the door," Kevin was begging.

"SHE'S NOT STUPID, LEAVE," Carly demanded in reply, we'd decided that it would be better if he didn't hear my voice.

"Listen you little brat, when I get in there, I'll kill ya, you got it Travers, and nobody'll be here to stop me." Kevin snarled.

I'd had enough, he couldn't speak to my sister like that, he had no right to speak to her at all, "I'LL BE HERE," I yelled in protest, "YOU'D HAVE TO KILL ME FIRST."

"You know I'd never do that Bella," He answered, "You're my baby girl."

"For the last time, my name is ISOBEL," I replied, wanting more than anything for him just to leave, "Just go, leave me alone, I don't want to know you."

"Bella, I love you, you're my daughter you know I do," He pleaded.

"You should have thought about that," I told him, "You had the chance to be my dad nine years ago, you lost it when you tried to kill Gabi, why the hell would you do that? Is that how you got your kicks back then, by killing, by scaring my sister into silence, you don't get it, do you Kevin? I don't care if you live or die, I don't know you, I don't want to know you, all I want you to do is go away."

"You don't mean…" He started, but trailed off as a car pulled up, the lights beaming through the gaps in the closed curtains.

**Gabriella's POV**

"THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT," He yelled as soon as he saw me.

"Stay here," my husband ordered, getting out of the car and locking it behind him to try and ensure that I followed his instructions.

"Please don't hurt him, he's not worth getting arrested for," I whispered to myself, glancing anxiously at the front door of my parent's house.

I looked down as soon as the tense atmosphere grew thicker, the last thing I wanted Kevin to have was witnesses to this, and I couldn't lie, I'm a lawyer, yeah yeah most lawyers lie to get their clients off, but I made a vow to myself that I would always speak the truth as I knew it, so ignoring the fight would give me the right to say, 'I didn't see a thing,' it would be the truth, right?

* * *

**REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**


	17. Perfection

**I am back, second story I'm updating on this wonderful new year, although technically it's still new years eve, remember my promise, I'd add a chapter to all of my stories and hopefully a oneshot over new year, I think I'm doing pretty well, two today (including getting through this morning at 3.20am) and hopefully two tomorrow, depends what time I get online, but I'll update making it right tomorrow for sure.**

* * *

**Isobel's POV**

"BEL, NO," Carly shouted from behind me, "YOU CAN'T,"

"Relax, Troy's out there, he won't let anything happen," I answered, trying to dissipate my stepsister's fears.

"DON'T BE AN IDIOT BEL," Carly demanded.

"Just watch the girls," I ordered as I opened the front door, sure that I was doing the right thing.

"BELLA!" Kevin exclaimed happily as he saw me, I noticed for the first time that night that his slurred words really were because he was drunk, "You look like your mom Bella bear, same beauty, but she's a pushover, you're not, you get that from me…"

"I get nothing from you," I shot back, stepping out and closing the door behind me.

"Come give your dad a hug," He continued, ignoring my comment.

"I can't, he's not here," I informed him, "Should be soon though."

I noticed that Troy had retreated as soon as I had appeared, he clearly wanted to see how I was going to handle this, I was just glad that I'd stepped in before any physical fighting started.

"I'm right here Bella," He smiled, trying to come closer, "You shouldn't be rude, GABI, COME TELL BELLA BEAR NOT TO BE RUDE."

I glanced over at my sister, she either hadn't heard him or was purposely ignoring him, she seemed to be staring at her hands.

"You're drunk," I stated the obvious.

"Not drunk Bella, I had a few drinks…" he cut himself off as he started counting sloppily on his fingers, "1…6…. 3…. 7…2…9…4… yeah, about four."

"I'm not talking to you when you're drunk," I decided, "Just leave."

"Not drunk… you don't talk… Charlie," He started mumbling, trailing off as it became inaudible, he raised his voice to say, "I promise, I come back,"

"Don't bother," I replied as he attempted to walk off, swaying with every step in a sort of zigzag line.

"Stupid," Troy sighed as soon as Kevin was gone, "What possessed you to open that door? You didn't just put yourself at risk then Isobel, The girls and Carly are in there, what if he'd have got in, you just don't think sometimes, do you?"

"Jeez, chill, you sound like an old man," I retaliated, knowing I really shouldn't have.

"Get inside," He ordered as my sister ran up to him.

"The girls?" She quizzed anxiously, eyeing the closed front door.

"Inside with Carly," I assured, "Tamsin won't let us near them though, because Kevin was yelling at us and somewhere in Tamsin's mind she decided that we were a threat to them, so she's locked herself and Kirra in the lounge and screams whenever we try to go near."

"You made her scream?" Troy asked, smirking.

"I didn't make her scream," I defended, "She's just out of control,"

"Tammy being defensive doesn't make her out of control, Bel. Besides, you're the perfect picture of out of control, you flew to Washington and back alone without permission from Mom or Dad, only telling our little sister, to find a guy that tried to kill me eleven years ago." My sister pointed out.

"Well when you put it like that…" I grinned, remembering how much trouble I had caused when I had done that.

"YOU GUYS," Carly called from the front door, " Tam's throwing stuff at the door, and I swear I heard glass break."

**Carly's POV**

"Tammy, open the door for Mommy," Gabriella was still calling through the closed lounge door that the four-year-old had resorted to barricading.

"I can't because Kirra cry," Tamsin tried explaining, "If I move chair then Kirra cry because of bad man."

"Tammy, he's gone, we need you to open the door, ok?" Troy joined in.

"No, no, no" Tamsin sighed.

"Tam, didn't you tell me earlier that you'd keep Kirra safe until mommy and daddy got here?" I tried.

"Yes," The child shouted in agreement through the still-closed door.

"Well mommy and daddy are here now, why don't you let them in?" I continued.

"But Kirra cry," Tamsin argued unsurely.

"Mommy can stop Kirra crying," Isobel chimed in, deciding that now was the best time to attempt to help.

"Only Mommy and Daddy?" Kirra asked, "Only Mommy and Daddy allowed to see Kirra, because bad man doesn't want mommy and daddy."

"Yeah, only mommy and daddy come near," Troy agreed with her, clearly just anxious to see his daughters.

"Good," Tamsin answered as we heard the sound of a dining chair scraping across the floor.

"Who put that in there anyway?" Gabriella asked.

"Me," I admitted, "Tam wanted me to get something off of one of the higher shelves, I couldn't reach and Bel's just short so…"

"Hey," Isobel interrupted, "I'm vertically challenged (**A/N: It's Kerry)**, not short."

"Whatever," I replied, hitting her for interrupting me.

"Moron," She insulted.

"Egotistical drama queen," I shot back.

"Oh go straighten your pom-poms cheerleader," Isobel retaliated.

"Straighten my pom-poms," I smirked, "that the best you could come up with."

"You never did tell me what was wrong with your original nose," Isobel snapped.

"I am so going to kill you," I gasped, lunging for her; she dodged and ran upstairs, me following close behind.

**Gabriella's POV**

"Mommy, they stupid," I heard Tamsin's voice from the now open doorway of the lounge.

I nodded as I picked her up, "You were being silly weren't you Tammy?"

"Nope," She denied as Troy disappeared into the lounge to get Kirra, " Daddy always say that I Kirra's big sister so I have to look after her, so I did, mommy I really did."

I smiled at the excitement in her voice, it was hard not to share it but she'd worried a lot of people tonight.

"Didn't take them long to be at each other's throats," Troy commented as he reappeared, carrying Kirra, "Kevin could have killed them less than ten minutes ago and they're already arguing over height and pompom's."

"Don't forget noses," I pointed out, smiling at the naïve behaviour of my sisters.

"Were your family always this full-on?" He quizzed.

"Always," I giggled in reply, "Even before I found out about Evan and Carly, Isobel was full on, but you know what?"

"What?" He asked.

"I wouldn't have it any over way," I replied, "They're perfect just the way they are."

"And me and Kirra too," Tamsin piped up.

"Yes, you and Kirra are the most perfect," I smiled, "Come on, we should probably stay until my parents get back, if only to stop Isobel and Carly killing eachother."

* * *

**HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!! That's right, I'm saying it early, because I can, and more people read this story than my others, and most of you read all of them (ahem Kerry, why don't you, did you read my rant about you in the last chapter of getting through, I might add to that in the next chapter of that story), so because most of you read this one it made sense to put it in this story, there, that is my rambling explanation as to why I'm saying happy new year now. OMG FIFTY SIX MINUTES TO GO, IT'S 11:04 GOING BY MY COMPUTER CLOCK.**

* * *

**Review!!!!**


	18. Avoidance

**Disclaimer: I do not own High School Musical, or Playhouse Disney, or anything to do with Disney really.**

* * *

**No One's POV**

Gabriella sighed as she checked through the file again; the case was near enough impossible to resolve, her client almost impossible to defend, it was, no matter how you looked at it, one person's word against another's, there was no clear answer, convincing a jury wouldn't be easy, she just had to hope for the best, hope that new evidence would come into light, proving without a doubt that her client was telling the truth, proving that the man in question had tried to kill the young woman whom had placed trust on her.

"Problem?" She heard a voice at the door.

"Thinking," She answered without looking up, she already knew whom it was, "I don't remember work being so hard before,"

"You've hardly ever been here before," The other person smiled, "Personally I don't know why you bother, your husband's salary could support you, your children and your grandchildren over the years."

"Sense of achievement," she told half of the truth, she hadn't told anyone the major reason for her determination to work, she didn't tell anyone at work about her murderous ex-stepfather, those who didn't know, wouldn't know, it was just the way it had to be, she couldn't stand the sympathy, words and looks alike, she didn't want to be the woman that was nearly killed, she didn't want the attention, keeping quiet was the best option.

"I guess that's something," The other woman smiled as she finally looked up.

"Anyone would think you were trying to get rid of me, Amy," She joked.

"If you stay, they'll notice how bad I am," Amy answered, "With you never here they get mad at you, but if you keep coming in they'll notice I'm terrible at the job."

"You're not terrible," Gabriella told her, "You can just be a little slow, besides, you turn up, they must like you better than me because of that alone."

"The only reason they're keeping you is because you're brilliant at the job, I heard them say, apparently you're the best they've got," Amy explained, "The way they were talking you'd think they were scared that you'd walk."

Gabriella bit her lip, she hated hearing things like that, and Amy hadn't been the first to say it to her that morning, she hated hearing the woman that she now considered a friend putting herself down, but most of all she hated everyone talking about her like she was a goddess or something, she wasn't, she just wanted to do her job, sure the compliments were a good thing, but even compliments can get too much, especially if you're hardly ever there to get them.

"So, what' cha thinking about?" Amy changed the subject.

"The case," Gabriella admitted, "And the girls, I've been away from them for 3 hours and I miss them like crazy."

"I bet they miss you too," Amy replied, "Where are they today, anyway?"

"At my in-laws with Troy," Gabriella sighed.

"Is that bad?" Amy quizzed, picking up on her friend's tone.

"No," Gabriella tried denying, but continued following Amy's disbelieving look, "I've never really gotten along with my father-in-law, he disliked me when I was sixteen, I doubt it'll change anytime soon, he loves the girls though."

"Wow, how do you handle visiting them?" Amy continued shooting questions.

"I don't," Gabriella admitted, "We don't visit them, Troy takes the girls every once in a while but I don't go, it's just better that way, if I stay away, that way if anything goes wrong I can't be blamed."

"What about his wife?" Amy asked.

"She's great," Gabriella smiled, although the questioning was now annoying her, "She comes over quite a bit, not so much recently but she tries, he never comes with her though, I think he likes not seeing me, that way he can pretend that I don't exist."

"But you're not ok with that?" Amy read her mind.

"No, I feel like I'm missing out on a part of my family, something I should have but don't, it's caused a lot of fights between Troy and I to, he thinks I should make more of an effort, last time I made an effort his dad started yelling at me for putting his son in possible danger," Gabriella explained, and then but her lip again, realising what she had just said.

"Danger?" Amy picked up on it, "What kind of danger?"

"It's nothing," Gabriella lied looking back down at the file that was still lying on her desk, "I'd better figure this out."

"That's where you're leaving it, that's cruel, you mention danger then stop talking, I'm not talking to you right now, you are so off my Christmas card list," Amy joked, pretending to be annoyed as she turned to face the door.

Gabriella couldn't help but giggle at her friend's stupidity; Amy always had been good at cheering people up, she just hadn't realised it yet.

**Troy's POV**

"Why doesn't Mommy come here with us?" Tamsin quizzed in front of my parents.

"Mommy had to work today," I tried telling her.

She stared at me for a few seconds before turning back to the TV, which had been switched to Playhouse Disney when we arrived.

"She should be here," mom tried telling me.

"You know why she won't come," I pointed out, "she wants you to know the girls, but she can't deal with the drama."

"She's weak, son," my dad tried telling me.

"No dad, she's just not stupid, she can tell when she's not wanted, and she hates that feeling, you have no idea what it's like to be her, to have a stepfather and an ex-boyfriend that tried to kill you, freaking out whenever you leave you're kids alone because you think they're next," I argued, knowing I shouldn't really be saying these things around the girls.

"Bring her next time," my dad relented after a short pause, "I promise I'll be civil."

"You better," I warned, "because if you're not, it won't just be her you see the last of."

"You don't mean that?" mom quizzed.

"Just him, mom, not you," I added, knowing that I shouldn't punish my mother for something that my father was doing.

She nodded as my father just sat there staring at me, I glanced down at the girls, carelessly watching TV, oblivious to what had just been said, there's always something to be grateful for, right?

* * *

**I know, I know, short, I'm going to try and write longer chapters, but with my family it's hard, they don't know how to shut up and let me write.**

* * *

**My Christmas holidays are over now, which means less writing time, more homework and 6 hours of boredom a day, although tomorrow it's only four, because I have drama twice, so two hours of acting, which isn't boring.**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!! Six for another chapter because of limited time.**


	19. Family

**Please vote in the poll on my profile, it's important.**

* * *

**This chapter, is weird, it uses words like, emphasise, I guess I've just had too many English lessons this week.**

* * *

**This may be the last chapter on any story for a while, my friend's brother is in hospital and she might have to come and stay with us for a while, if she doesn't come then yeah, I can continue writing, but it's not fair on her if I write while she's here.**

* * *

**I am in the most random msn conversation ever, Kerry rang my mum, and I answered, of course, Kerry made me give the phone to my mum, and we're in this conversation with eight other people, and I'm like, "Why did you ring my mum? Stop talking to my mum, why did you ring my mother?" and everyone else is like, "Erm, ok then,"**

* * *

**Isobel's POV**

"Gabi done a full day of work," I smiled as my parents asked what was new, they always do that, try and act like they understand us, seriously, does anyone actually say what's new anymore?

"Really?" Mom asked, grinning as soon as I finished speaking, "That's great,"

"You say that as if it's a big deal," my sister complained, "contrary to popular belief I have actually done a full day of work before."

"That's great, sweetie," mom commented, clearly distracted.

"Riiighhhttt," Carly dragged, prolonging the word to emphasise sarcasm, "Gabi, why are you here anyway?"

"Nice to know I'm wanted," Gabriella teased, making our sister, whom didn't catch her tone, send her an apologetic look, "I'm kidding, Carls."

"Cheerleader isn't smart enough to know that," I pointed out, "That's why she's a cheerleader."

"She looks pretty in that uniform," mom put in as she decided to walk into the kitchen.

"Here's a question," Gabriella started, "What's up with mom?"

"Here's another question," Carly continued, "The same one as earlier actually, Why are you here?"

"Why are you here?" I quizzed my younger sister.

"Erm, because I live here, duh," Carly replied snappily, still watching our elder sister.

"Why?" I continued asking stupid questions, now intent on annoying her.

"Because I'm seventeen, therefore still live with my parents, whom happen to be, in a way, the same parents that you have," Carly explained, slowly.

"Isn't that a depressing fact," I continued, watching as Gabriella gave me a warning look, there was only so much she would let me say to the girl who was, technically her sister, but not mine.

"What, that you're my stepsister, yeah that is depressing," Carly retorted.

"Guys," Gabriella interrupted.

I made a choice, I was, for once in my life, going to ignore my sister, "Honey, I'm glad I'm not related to you."

"Why the hell did you call me honey?" Carly quizzed, "that it so disturbing it is beyond belief."

"GUYS," Gabriella tried again, louder this time.

We both turned to her at the same time.

"You know mom hates it when we shout," Carly stated.

"You two," Gabriella decided, "are impossible,"

"That's why you love us so much," I decided to be cheeky, "you never did tell us why you were here."

"I was driving around and decided that I wanted to get caught in the middle of one mf your fights, so I dropped by," Gabriella smiled.

"Sad life you lead," Carly commented, smirking.

"Of course it is," Gabriella agreed, "You two are in it, that automatically makes it sad."

"Insult us why don't you," Carly complained, looking to me for backup.

"She just did," I pointed out, laughing at the face Carly made, "She's very subtle about it."

"You can so tell that you two weren't raised by dad," Carly decided.

"That's enough, Carly," I heard dad himself all but shout, he had clearly heard all of the conversation.

I looked over to Gabriella to see if the words had affected her, she looked like she was on the verge of laughing; I looked behind me to see if there was a reason.

Dad's face was a picture, he was so angry his face was completely red, his eyes were practically bulging, it took me a while to see what was funny, but as I noticed it I too, struggled to hold back laughter, his arms were behind his back, the arms around his neck were practically strangling him.

"Grampy give me horsie ride," Tamsin pretty much screamed when she saw us all looking.

"Sweetie, I think you're suffocating Grampy," Gabriella pointed out.

"No," Tamsin denied, widening her eyes as she scanned the room, "Auntie Carly a ghost."

I looked over at Carly to notice that she had gone inhumanely pale.

"Auntie Carly's not a ghost, sweetie," Gabriella told her.

"Yes," Tamsin insisted, "Kirra a baby."

"Yes, Kirra is a baby," I agreed, standing as I tried to loosen her grip around dad's neck.

"No," Kirra tried kicking me, "My Grampy, not yours, you go way."

Why Tamsin had became so attached to dad I didn't know, but it did make me think, how the hell is Gabi gonna get her to go home.

* * *

**Don'r forget to vote for your favourite story of mine in the poll, it's basically the difference between wheter i update it during mock week or not.**

* * *

**Yes, i know this chapter is short, shorter than i thought it was actually, but it's nearly 11pm, and i have school tomorrow, and i want to watch confessions of a teenage drama queen (or as i now call it, COAT, because i have the song That girl from the movie on my MP3 and it says, "That Girl - Lindsay Lohan (COAT soundtrack)" which made me laugh.**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!! six for the next chapter, because of limited time.**


	20. Chaos

**Ok, I am completely exhausted, I've just spent the past four and a half hours doing RE work, and when I have this up I have to do more maths, I never knew homework could be so tiring. I want to be my cat; he's asleep right now.**

* * *

**I'm not going to ramble as much as I normally would, I'm just way too tired, so, onto the story.**

* * *

**Troy's POV**

"I can't do this," Gabriella tried for what must have been the fourth time that day as we pulled up outside my parent's house.

"Yes, you can," I insisted, "and you will."

I knew I was on thin ice, she was already mad at me for making her come, and the girls could tell something was wrong, Tamsin had already started asking why mommy was upset. If it weren't true I'd find it cute that she cared so much.

"Why are you making me do this?" Gabriella asked me as she got out the car and went to get Kirra out.

"Because you can't avoid my dad forever," I answered, "he's gonna learn to love you whether he wants to or not, not as much as I do of course, no one could do that."

"Silly daddy," Tamsin commented, "I love mommy more than you do."

"Ok, sweetie," I smiled as I picked her up, shaking my head.

"Mommy loves you and Kirra more than she loves daddy, doesn't she," Gabriella asked Tamsin.

The four year old nodded as I sent my wife a pleading look, I knew she understood why I wanted her to come, what she didn't understand was why now, she thought that the system we'd been going with for the past three years was fine, but it couldn't go on like this, and she could stay mad for as long as she liked, it wasn't going to change the fact that she was going to have to continue dealing with my dad.

"Mommy, do you like daddy?" Tamsin suddenly quizzed as we closed the car doors and began making our way up the front path.

"Sometimes," Gabriella smiled.

"Why only sometimes?" Tamsin continued her mini interrogation.

"Because sometimes daddy annoys mommy and she doesn't like it," Gabriella told her.

"Daddy, don't annoy mommy," Tamsin ordered in a matter of fact tone, "pwomise me,"

"I promise that I won't annoy mommy," I relented.

Tamsin seemed satisfied as she started pulling my hair.

"Daddy, Uncle Chad hair big, why your hair not big?" She asked out of pure curiosity.

I watched Gabriella try to smother laughter out of the corner of my eye and turn to Kirra in order to distract herself.

"Daddy isn't as silly as uncle Chad," I told her, knowing that it would work.

I reached out and knocked the door as we reached it, knowing that Gabriella wouldn't knock herself.

The door swung open almost immediately, revealing my somewhat excited mother.

"Hi," She grinned at the group of us, "Gabi, nice to see you, especially here,"

She ushered us into the house, closing the door behind us, "Jack's outside on the court, barely left the thing all morning, he's getting rusty, come, come and sit down, I'll go and get him."

"See, he's already avoiding me," Gabriella whispered as soon as my mom left the room, "me coming here was a big mistake,"

"No it wasn't," I replied as I sat down next to her, putting Tamsin on the floor, "I can't get at him without you, but I'm going to need you to pretend not to be so mad at me,"

"Explain," she asked, a mischievous glint now visible in her eye.

"We just act all loved up, he'll hate it, it'll annoy him, and the best part is, I won't mind it one little bit," I grinned.

"What are you suggesting?" she gasped in mock horror.

"Here he is," My mother announced from the door, dragging my father in behind her.

"Son," he greeted, settling his eyes on Tamsin, he slowly added, "Gabriella,"

"What about me?" Tamsin protested, meeting his gaze.

"Tammy," Dad smiled as my daughter used the famous pout on him.

My dad wasn't used to that pout, he'd only ever seen it on Tamsin, but all three of the girls in my life used it to get what they wanted, and it nearly always worked.

"He won't even look at me," Gabriella whispered to me, I smiled reassuringly in response, not wanting to draw any attention to us.

"Daddy," Kirra whined from Gabriella's lap.

"Yes," I smiled, turning to face her, she turned in the other direction, "Kirra,"

"Not me, it Tam," Kirra tried, pointing towards her sister.

"It wasn't Tamsin," I pointed out.

"Not me," Kirra still continued, "me stay with mommy,"

"Kirra always stay with mommy," Tamsin argued from the floor, "I want to stay with mommy, you go see daddy."

Tamsin started trying to physically pull Kirra away from Gabriella.

"NO," Kirra shouted, using her favourite word once again and kicking out at her sister, "My mommy,"

"Kirra, don't kick," I tried disciplining, "Tamsin, stop pulling your sister,"

Both girls shot me a look of contempt before continuing with their mini battle, Gabriella still trying to block their attempts to hurt eachother. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea.

* * *

**This may be my last chapter for any story in a while, I have so much homework it's actually not funny, and then there's my exams, I might actually try and update all of my stories during that time because of the amount of homework I have now, I only have to go in for exams anyway, so I might have more time, and I have figured out that writing these stories helps me with my English revision.**

* * *

**Anyways Review!!! I'll try and update with some longer chapters soon, in the meantime, check out my latest oneshot in my collection.**


	21. Arguments

**I'm going to find it hard to end this story when the time comes, it's the last of a trilogy, which means the end of an era to me, it's kinda sad, not that it's ending soon, I'm just saying, it'll be hard, because I've grown used to the specific ways I've made the characters I created, and I'll miss writing Tamsin and Kirra so much, I've only thought about this because while I am writing the chapters I am forever planning the epilogue, I have quite a few notes on that in my plan book actually, some of it courtesy of Kerry, anyways, I'm going to stop going on about ending it and let you read before you get bored to death with my constant ranting before even reading the chapter, that would be bad.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

"Tammy, look what you left here," Lucille spoke up, distracting her from the argument she was having with Kirra over me.

"CAPPY CHAV," Tamsin squealed in excitement as he saw the doll that her grandmother was holding, "she the cappy of a BIG boat grandma, and she a pirate and I'm going to be a pirate when I'm bigger, daddy said that I can be ever I want to be,"

"That's wonderful, angel," Lucille answered as I smiled in thanks to her.

"You can come on my boat for free grandma, and Grandad too, and Nana and Grampy," Tamsin explained, getting even more exited bu the word.

"Who's getting you this boat then, Tam?" Jack asked her, the surprised look on her face made me wonder whether he was interacting with her in an attempt to annoy me.

"Daddy get me boat," Tamsin claimed, nodding wildly. "And Kirra be in crew, and mommy and daddy, and everyone else, and I be the boss, when we at daycare, they had boat, and I was cappy once, but we don't go there anymore, because mommy and daddy didn't like it, daddy said there was a silly lady there and she wasn't very nice,"

Lucille looked up at the pair of us questioningly at Tamsin's comments, we hadn't told any of our family about our reasons for taking them out of daycare, it didn't seem important, all that mattered was that we had.

"Did you know," Tamsin continued, "mommy love me and Kirra more than daddy, she told me so, and I love mommy more than daddy loves mommy, but daddy was being silly and he said he loved her more than anyone else, but he not, because I do,"

I smiled at my daughter's continuing conversation, she clearly didn't care if anyone was listening or not, she didn't seem to notice that we all were, except for Kirra, who had taken to kicking her father and laughing about it.

"Kirrybean, can you stop doing that?" he asked her after a while.

"Why?" she quizzed in response.

"Daddy doesn't like it," he reasoned, "it's not nice to kick,"

"Not kick," she insisted, "tap tap,"

"You're dancing are you?" he smiled at her as she nodded vigorously.

"Me see art Tayer?" she asked, clearly expecting us to answer immediately.

"Not today angel, but Nana's coming to look after you later," I told her.

"Why?" She quizzed.

"Because mommy and daddy are going out," I explained.

"Why?" she repeated.

"Because mommies and daddies go out sometimes," I added to try and answer her repetition.

"Why?" she continued using the same word.

"Because mommies and daddies sometimes need time off from the little children, no matter how much they love them," Troy cut in.

"Why?" Kirra repeated once more.

"Because we make them tired, stupid," Tamsin commented, trying to act older and wiser than she actually was.

"Not soopid," Kirra argued, "you soopid,"

"Nobody's stupid, girls," I told them, breaking up the battle before it could really begin.

"What about silly?" Tamsin piped up.

"We're all silly sometimes," Troy told her.

"Mommy's not silly," Tamsin decided, "not ever,"

"I'm silly sometimes," I told her, "like, when mommy and daddy fight, we're both being silly then aren't we?"

She nodded, "Like now?"

"We're not fighting now, sweetie," I tried, willing for her to stay quiet.

"You are, because you told me that sometimes daddy annoys you, and you were acting like you hated him, do you hate him?" Tamsin fought.

"I love daddy, Tammy, I have since I first met him, everyone has little fights, it doesn't mean they don't love eachother anymore," I explained, noticing the glare I had received from my father-in-law.

"So Uncle Chad and Auntie Taylor still love eachother?" Tamsin asked, looking to both Troy and I for an answer.

"What do you know about uncle Chad and auntie Taylor?" Troy asked her, clearly intrigued.

"Sophie told me that they argue sometimes, and that Uncle Chad is not telling the truth and it makes Auntie Taylor mad, then they fight more and then Uncle Chad leaves and he comes back in the morning with flowers," Tamsin rushed nonchalantly, "she said it makes her cry because she doesn't like it when they fight, I don't like it when you fight, but I don't cry because I'm a big girl, and Sophie should be a big girl because she's older than me,"

I sighed, partly as I realised that I had never really thought much about how my own marital fights affected the girls, I had to make that a priority now, they had to come before everything, every decision had to be based on them., but mainly because Taylor hadn't told me the true extent of her own issues, sure I'd known they were fighting, but I didn't know that he sometimes left at night over it.

I smiled at my own husband, realising that I'd been taking him for granted, he was given opportunities to play for other teams away from home plenty of times, he'd turned all the offers down because he wanted to stay close to home, close to us, he went to a few away games but if they meant he'd be away for more than a week he wouldn't go, I guess I just took him for granted because of that, he was around pretty much permanently, he was a brilliant dad to the girls, I couldn't really ask for anything else, I hadn't realised before that I had no idea why we had been fighting so much.

His parents were still giving us questioning looks, we hadn't told them about the fights, and nobody had spoken since Tamsin, Kirra was all but asleep on my lap, the room had fallen into silence.

"I told you marriage wasn't for you," Jack decided, "fighting in front of kids,"

"That's it," I heard Troy announce as he stood up, picking up Tamsin in the process as she struggled to keep hold of her doll, "we're leaving, come on Gabi,"

I just nodded, not really knowing what to say or do as I stood up, I hadn't seen him this angry in years, not since the whole Kevin/Kieran thing, and this anger was directed at his dad, something I didn't expect.

"We go home?" Tamsin asked me over his shoulder.

"I guess so," I answered, adjusting Kirra on my hip so she was in a more comfortable position.

I followed him out the door, listening as he said, "Seeya soon mom," but ignored his father completely.

As soon as we were all in the car I turned to him, "ok, so truthfully, what was that about?"

"Nothing," he stated, clearly angry.

"Why won't you tell me?" I asked curiously, knowing that normally he would tell me anything.

"Because you don't need to know," he answered.

"How am I meant to understand if you don't tell me?" I pointed out, expecting him to say he'd tell me later.

"DAMN IT GABI, DON'T PUSH ME ON THIS," he shouted, making me jump, I turned away from him, feeling tears pricking in my eyes that I knew would fall, he'd never shouted at me before, not like that.

"Gab?" he asked a few seconds later, clearly calmer, regret evident in his voice.

I refused to look at him, just stared at the paving slabs of the sidewalk.

"Gab?" he repeated, turning my head so I was facing him, "I'm sorry I yelled, I'm not mad at you, I was wrong to take it out on you, forgive me?"

His thumb was gently caressing my cheek, wiping away those few stray tears that had managed to fall.

I nodded and turned to face the girls in the back of the car, Kirra was crying, she'd been startled awake by his shouting, Tamsin was glaring at the back of his seat like she hated him. I sighed, turning back to face the front.

"Are we ok?" he asked me, still surveying my face.

I shook my head slightly, I didn't want the girls to see, but I didn't want him to think that he could shout like that and expect everything to be ok seconds later.

"I'm sorry," he whispered as he started the car, setting off for home.

**Isobel's POV**

"Isobel?" I heard a male voice ask behind me, "Isobel Travers?"

I turned to face its source, knowing that it was a voice I recognised, a voice I'd been dreading hearing again ever since my sister had explained everything.

"Kieran Sanchez," I greeted, "as I live and breathe,"

"I guess you want to know why I'm here," he sighed.

"It'd be a start," I agreed.

"I need to apologise to your sister," he started, "after everything that happened in high school I figured that I owe it to her, especially now we're older and wiser, mature enough to deal with it."

"She won't see you," I told him, "she still hates you,"

"That's why I came to you first, I need your help," he admitted.

"Why would I help you?" I snapped, "that would mean betraying my own sister, and I won't do that,"

"I don't know," he told me truthfully, "I know you have more reasons not to help, but I can pay you to help if that's what it will take, I just need the chance to apologise,"

The look in his eye told me what chance he really wanted, "forget it, she's married, happily married with two kids, your nothing to her, you really think she'd even consider that even if she wasn't married, you tried to kill her,"

"Married?" he repeated, "to who?"

"You've met him," I pointed out, "he never liked you much either, you told me that,"

"You mean she married…" he began.

"Troy Bolton," I cut him off, "Yeah, I always knew that would last, I bet you were hoping it wouldn't,"

"Why wouldn't Kate tell me that?" he asked himself.

"Probably because she didn't want you gate crashing the wedding," I snapped, "I'll show you the DVD if you like, mom insisted on recording it, infact, you may be able to convince me to burn you a copy, I know how much you'll love being able to repeatedly watch my sister kiss another man, the love of her life as she puts it, on her wedding day, that you weren't given the chance to ruin,"

"You really are a spiteful girl, you know that?" he questioned in reply.

"I am so not burning you that disc," I told him, "and I'm not helping you talk to Gabi, I don't want you wrecking her life more than you already have."

He shook his head as he turned and sauntered off, I watched him until he was out of sight, automatically deciding that I had to tell someone, and the only option was my biological father, he was the only one that truly understood the danger that Kieran could be, sure my parents tried, but from what Kieran himself had told me, my father had experienced it.

I turned and began jogging in the opposite direction of my home, to the place where I knew that Kevin Montez lived; the same question kept running through my head, what had I done?

* * *

**I think that's been my longest chapter of this story for a while, the last chapter of making it right was just that little bit longer, hopefully I'll update soon, but my friend keeps insisting that I update making it right every day, that's why I haven't updated this story or getting through in a while, because she's been pestering me into updating making it right, which is doing awesomely well review-wise (like ten or eleven each chapter), let's get this one up to it's standards.**

* * *

**I know that it's a bit of a cliffy, with Isobel going to see Kevin, the Troyella fight that i didn't actually resolve, and Tamsin letting slip the intensity of the Chaylor problems, but that was all intentional, i decided that the story was getting a little bit too fluffy for my liking, so i had to add a little drama to make it more interesting and fun to write.**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!!!!**


	22. Fear

**Haha, Isobel's insane, I totally agree, she's a version of Kerry, short and insane, ok, she's going to kill me for that.**

* * *

**Please don't hate Katelyn, I am losing control of what I write, it comes into my head and the next thing I know it's typed out.**

* * *

**So many ideas, so little time, I'm kinda glad I left the last chapter where I did, it gave me quite a few routes to go with this one and I'm planning on using at least two of them, starting with:**

* * *

**Katelyns POV (she actually has one, even though I've never written it before)**

I looked up from the magazine as the doorbell rang; I had a bad feeling about it as soon as I'd heard it, but ignoring it wouldn't make the problem go away, besides, if I didn't answer it, Josh would, so I put the magazine aside and headed towards the door.

"Katie," exclaimed the voice of the person as I answered it, it took me a while to digest that I had come face to face with my twin brother.

"Katelyn," I corrected harshly, "what are you doing here?"

"There's something wrong with me coming to see my sis?" he asked stupidly, "I've missed you,"

"You shouldn't be here," I insisted, "you coming back here was a mistake, you have to go,"

"Kate, relax," he tried, "I'm not gonna do anything stupid,"

"I don't believe you," I told him, "you live to do stupid things Kieran, please, just go, Josh could come down at any second, and I don't know how he'll react to you, he knows what you did, we have no secrets from eachother, I had to tell him,"

"By Josh I'm guessing you mean your husband," Kieran continued talking, "the guy you married without inviting me, but inviting dad as a way to rub it in my face,"

"You know I couldn't invite you," I argued, "Gabi was there, she wouldn't have been if you were, and even if I had of invited you, you probably wouldn't have even came,"

"You chose your friend over your brother?" he questioned, evidently insulted, "what happened to blood's thicker than water,"

"Blood tried to kill my best friend," I snapped, "you really thought I'd choose you over her after you did that?"

"Katie, it's in the past," he complained.

"Gabi won't see it like that, nor will her family…" I started.

"Isobel came to me," he interrupted, "her family are fine with me being here."

"That's what she'd say if I asked is it?" I shot back, "I doubt it Kieran, and even if it is true, it's not what Isobel says that matters it's what Gabi thinks, and there's no way she'd want you here,"

"So you'd ditch your own brother on your friends say so," Kieran stated as he pushed past me and into the house, "that's crazy Kate,"

I decided to give up on getting him to leave; closing the door behind him I followed him into the house.

"What good will coming here do you?" I quizzed, wanting to know what he was thinking.

"I need to apologise to her," he replied, "for everything that I put her through, in Washington and then here, she needs to know that I was just a messed up kid,"

"That's not a good idea, Kier," I pointed out, "she won't want to see you and if Troy see's you near her he'll kill you, and I mean literally, he won't give you any more chances to stay away,"

"So I'll go when he's not home," Kieran decided, "by the time he gets back and she tells him, I'll be long gone,"

"I'm not letting you go near her alone," I argued, "she's my friend, I wouldn't do that to her,"

"So come," he suggested, "that way you'll be there to make sure I don't do anything stupid, it wasn't my original plan, I only came here to figure out when she would be alone, see, I already considered that man,"

The sound of feet on the stairs grasped both of our attention, he had no idea that it wasn't Josh, only I knew that, but it was much worse.

The young girl smiled at both of us as she came into the room, her dark hair hanging in a loose ponytail behind her head.

"Soph, honey," I smiled, "can you go find Uncle Josh for me,"

"He just told me to come and find you," the child explained, "he's working again, and Tyler's asleep and I'm bored, who's he?"

I sighed, not really knowing what to say, I couldn't tell her that he was my brother, she'd tell one of her parents, and I couldn't risk Chad or Taylor finding out, they were angry enough these days without having to deal with him.

"I'm Katie's friend," my brother spoke up for me.

Sophie watched him for a few seconds before turning to me, "whose Katie?"

"I'm Katie, sweetie, some people call me Katie," I explained.

"But Mommy and Daddy and everyone else call you Katie," she pointed out, "can I go to Tamsin's?"

"Sorry, kid, but your mom asked me to watch you and your brother…"I began, before checking my watch as something hit me, "sure we can,"

I saw the questioning look I gained from my brother and gave him an all-knowing smile to help him understand, I had no idea why I was taking him there, and my friends would probably hate me forever, but he is my brother after all, and he asked for help, he said he wants to apologise, I have to trust him.

"Let's go and get Tyler shall we, and we'll all go to Tamsin's" I announced.

Sophie nodded excitedly as I started up the stairs.

**Gabriella's POV**

"Tamsin, stop throwing food," I said loudly from the kitchen.

"But I…" she began to argue.

"No buts, Tam, I know you too well," I smiled to myself, picturing the look that would currently be on her face.

Loud music suddenly erupted from the lounge, making me sigh before shouting, "TAMSIN,"

"IT KIRRA," she argued as the music turned off

"Kirra's in here," I pointed out, knowing she'd still try and argue her way out of it.

"She have mote," Tamsin continued, "she naughty girl,"

"Of course," I agreed, laughing slightly.

"Mommy," Tamsin's voice came from her now nearer position at the kitchen door.

"Yeah?" I asked, facing her.

"When's daddy coming home?" she quizzed, looking me in the eye.

"I don't know, sweetie," I told her truthfully, "he shouldn't be long,"

"Are you mad at daddy?" she continued shooting questions.

"No, I'm not mad at daddy, I denied, not even sure myself if it was the truth or not.

"Then why did daddy go out?" she continued asking.

"Daddy had to work," I tried; she normally believed everything that I said.

"No," she argued, "daddy tell me he not work today,"

"He went anyway," I suggested more than stated.

"No lie mommy," she lectured, "you mad at daddy,"

"I'm not mad," I decided, "and daddy will be home soon,"

"I'm mad at daddy," she informed me, "I don't like it when daddy shouts, and I think you should be mad too, because daddy shout very loud, and he be nasty to Grandad when he not be,"

"You shouldn't be mad at daddy," I insisted, "you love daddy, you shouldn't be mad at people you love,"

"Do you love daddy?" she questioned, not remembering that I'd already answered that for her earlier in the day.

"Yes, honey, I do love daddy," I told her again.

"Does daddy love you?" she quizzed, watching me expectantly.

"What do you think?" I answered, watching her as she thought.

"I don't know," she told me after a while, "because he shouted at you and then he left, like Sophie said Uncle Chad does,"

I sighed, her facial expression told me that what she had said was what she believed, she was confused, and I couldn't blame her.

"Mommy?" she spoke up again, "do you think that Uncle Chad and Auntie Taylor are going to split up?"

"I don't know," I told her, "I hope not,"

"What about you and daddy?" she continued, "I don't want you to split up,"

"Don't you worry about me and daddy, we're going to be just fine," I insisted.

"Pinky promise?" she smiled.

I returned her smile as I held my little finger out to her, "pinky promise,"

I looked up as the doorbell rang, "come on, let's go see who that is,"

I took her hand as I picked Kirra up in my other arm, heading towards the door.

"You open it?" I suggested.

"Mommy, I'm not allowed to open the door," she reminded me.

"It's ok if me or daddy are right next to you," I told her, causing her to grin excitedly as she reached for the door handle.

As soon as it swung open, she screamed as Sophie bundled into her.

"IT ME," my friends daughter announced happily, "did you know it was me?"

"No, honey, I didn't," I smiled as I turned back to the door to see Katelyn standing there with Tyler in her arms, "hey Kate,"

"Don't you hey Kate me, you haven't called me in two days, two whole days Gabi, what is up with that?" Katelyn joked.

"I was busy," I answered as I always did, "having a life that didn't involve you,"

"You know, next time I see you you're going to have another daughter, called Zoë, and I'm not gonna know she existed because you would have forgotten to call and tell me about her," Katelyn continued.

"Who's Zoë?" I continued the little skit I had grown so used to over the past four years.

"You don't know your own daughter?" Katelyn gasped, "that is bad Gab,"

We both started laughing as she finally managed to be serious, "Hi,"

"Normal again?" I laughed as she mocked insult on her face.

"Not exactly," she stuttered, "oh god you are so gonna kill me for this,"

"For…" I began, stopping, as a man I still vaguely recognised stepped out from the side of the door, "No way,"

"Don't get mad," Katelyn pretty much begged.

"Tyler," I demanded, still watching him, glancing at my friend to note the obviously confused look on her face, "Tyler,"

She looked down at the baby, then back up to me as I set Kirra on the floor and watched her leave the doorway to find her sister.

"I don't get what…" Katelyn started.

"Tyler," I demanded again.

She looked down at him, before holding him out to me.

I instantly took him, cradling him in my arms.

"Do you have any idea what Taylor would say if she knew you had HIM around her kids?" I questioned.

She seemed confused that I wasn't as mad about the fact that he was here, than I was about him being around my friend's children.

"Why did you bring him here?" I quizzed harshly.

"I insisted," Kieran spoke up, making me glare at him, "she didn't want to, I forced her, I needed to apologise,"

"Leave," I demanded, "I don't want you around my kids,"

"I can't go without Soph and Ty, Tay's relying on me," Katelyn tried.

"I'll call her and tell her they're with me, you really think she'll trust you any more if she finds out that HE was anywhere near them, "I hissed, completely ignoring Kieran.

"He just wanted to apologise," Katelyn tried.

"I don't care what he wants Katelyn, I don't want him near me, I don't want him near my family, I just don't want him here," I continued.

**No one's POV**

Tamsin silently watched her mother arguing with her Aunt Katelyn and some strange man from the lounge door, the four-year-old had a feeling that this wasn't good, her mom had, after all, taken Tyler away from them, her belief that something was wrong was overpowering her as she spotted her mothers cell on the coffee table.

Glancing one last time at her mother, she walked to it and picked it up, pressing one and then the green button like she had seen her mother do many times before when trying to reach her father.

"Daddy?" she asked when the phone was answered.

"Tammy?" he questioned in reply, "Tammy, does mommy know you're on the phone,"

"Daddy you have to come home," she insisted, "mommy is fighting with Auntie Kate and a man and she looks scared and I don't like it,"

"Tammy, you are telling the truth aren't you," he asked her.

"Yes, mommy's scared daddy, I know she is, and I am too because I don't like the man, and mommy took Tyler away from Auntie Kate because the man is with her and she doesn't like him," Tamsin insisted.

"Tam, can you give the phone to mommy?" he asked, knowing that his wife was probably still mad at him, but too worried to care.

"Daddy, she at door fighting, and she scared," the four-year-old kept insisting, "you come home,"

"I'm on my way, princess," he assured her, "look after mommy until I get there, ok?"

"Ok," Tamsin answered, "I go now,"

She pressed the red button on the phone and put it back on the table, making her way out into the hall.

"Mommy?" she asked as she reached her, tugging on the hem of her shirt.

"Tammy, can you go play with Sophie and Kirra?" her mother asked her, still watching the pair at the door intently.

"Mommy, who that?" she quizzed; ignoring her mom's request.

Gabriella looked down at her, smiling reassuringly as if trying to convince her daughter to do as she was told, but she knew the girl wouldn't go, she was like her father in that sense, over-protected.

* * *

**Wow, seven pages, I'm so proud, now that is the longest one I've written in weeks. I have school tomorrow, it's so sad, hopefully I'll have another chapter for one of my stories after it, but no promises, promise is a BIG word, I really don't want to go though, the place is boredom central, except the two drama lessons, they should be good. Anyways, I'm off, I'm gonna watch a DVD or something, probably one of the HSM's, because since I started writing my HSM stories, I have been more obsessed than I have ever been before, it's like HSM, Grey's Anatomy and Ghost Whisperer rule my life or something, I know, sad!**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!!!**


	23. Staying

**My friend Kerry is an interesting person; here is an extract from her review:**

**Can donkeys answer the phone?  
The donkey wants to plot the place where you are going to throw my coffin  
over bored into the sea.My funeral songs,**

**the huma huma  
and  
under the sea**

**Interesting.**

* * *

**In English today our teacher was an idiot.**

**Miss: Do you need paper to write down Journey's end notes?**

**Me: (to Kirsty) No, we're gonna write on the table, what else would we use if we don't have computers?**

**Seriously, how some teachers get their jobs is beyond me.**

* * *

**In drama (both lessons), we were having a discussion about High School Musical 2 when we were meant to be working, the teacher didn't notice, we decided that Zac's dancing is similar to a girls during Bet On It, the drummer in everyday is a genius (how many drummers do you know that can play the drums without hitting them?), and humuhumunukunukuapua'a is the greatest song ever written.**

**A very constructive lesson, don't you think?**

* * *

**Kerry and I were sent on a wild goose chase this morning by our teachers, it was better than assembly, that's all I can say.**

* * *

**Ok, I think that's enough pointless ramble for one chapter, but I'm not entirely sure, and if I wasn't bored with it already, I'd continue, but as I am, onto the story.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

"Mommy, who he?" Tamsin kept insisting, "daddy tell me when he come home,"

"Kate and her friend won't be here when daddy gets home," I told her, while hinting to the pair that they had to leave.

"Daddy come home NOW," Tamsin insisted, "he tell me so,"

"And when did you talk to daddy?" I quizzed, wanting to know what she meant.

"On the phone when you here," she told me, "silly mommy left phone out, Kirra could get it and then it break,"

"Tamsin are you trying to tell me that you called daddy on my cell?" I asked, already guessing that this was the case but wanting to hear it from her.

She nodded, slyly smiling, "he said he come home,"

"I should go," Kieran spoke up, "Kate and I, I mean, we should go,"

"Still scared of him," I smirked, "after all these years,"

"He can be pretty scary sometimes, Gab," Katelyn decided.

"Daddy not scary," Tamsin insisted.

"Tammy, honey, can you go and find Kirra and Sophie?" I asked, hoping that this time she would listen.

She nodded and ran towards the kitchen, leaving me alone with Tyler, Kate and her insipid twin.

"Still here?" I questioned harshly, "you must have a death wish or something, because that is the only reason you'd still be here,"

"Cute kid," Kieran commented, "doesn't look much like you though,"

"I don't need your assessment," I snapped as Katelyn decided to explain, "she looks more like her dad, Kirra's the one that really takes after Gabi,"

"Ok," Kieran agreed, more to his sister than to me, "so we're gonna get going, but just a warning Gab, I'm not going back to Washington, so I'll see you around,"

"Don't count on it," I replied, kicking the door closed as Katelyn gasped, she clearly hadn't known that her brother was sticking around.

"Hungry," Kirra announced from the kitchen door, watching me intently as I carried Tyler towards her.

"It's dinner time now isn't it sweetie?" I asked her.

She nodded as she got down on her hands and knee's and crawled back into the kitchen, why she wasn't walking was a mystery to me, she's been able to do that for a while.

**Troy's POV**

I pulled up outside the quiet house, only momentarily doubting whether my daughter had been sure when she'd said they were in danger, she'd seemed so certain, and she wouldn't lie about that, something was definitely up.

I unlocked the door and immediately heard the sound of children's laughter coming from the dining room.

Closing the door as I headed in there I saw not just my children, but my friends children sitting eating dinner happily, my wife, however, seemed on edge, Tamsin had been right, something had happened.

She smiled as she saw me, probably trying to stop me from worrying, she'd clearly forgotten that she was meant to be mad at me right now.

"Daddy," I heard Kirra shriek excitedly, making Tamsin turn around.

"The bad man left, daddy," Tamsin explained, "And Auntie Kate went, I don't think I like Auntie Kate anymore,"

"What did the bad man look like?" I asked my daughter, knowing I wouldn't get a straight answer from her mother even though she obviously knew whom it was.

"He looked like Auntie Kate," Tamsin insisted, sticking her tongue out at Sophie across the table.

I glanced over at Gabriella, she wasn't looking at me, she was concentrating on Tyler, another sign that something was wrong; she always avoided my gaze when she was hiding something.

"Was it him?" I quizzed, knowing that I hand to be demanding now, or she'd never tell me.

She looked up at me quickly before turning back to Tyler before meeting my gaze; she nodded slightly, still concentrating on the baby.

"What did he want?" I asked, suddenly curious as to why the other person that had attempted to ruin her life had turned up out of the blue.

She shrugged, knowing that I wouldn't believe her.

"Tam?" I questioned my daughter, "what did the bad man want?"

"He kept saying sorry to mommy," she immediately told me, "and when I said that you were coming home he said he had to go, and Auntie Katelyn said you were scary, but I don't think you are,"

"Have you called Taylor?" I quizzed, turning back to Gabriella, "about the kids?"

"Not yet," she admitted, still not making eye contact, "I was gonna call her later,"

"I'll go and call Chad now," I replied, "we'll talk about this later."

I felt her gaze on my back as I left the room, also feeling other eyes, burning into me, I quickly turned around to see Sophie also staring, that was normal though, I had just mentioned her dad, she was curious.

I dialled Chad's number while making sure I could still see all of the people in the next room, letting them out of my sight wasn't an option right now.

* * *

**Haha, no showdown, I'm evil, I know.**

* * *

**I can't wait to write the epilogue, weird i know, but i'm really excited about it, because i'm a freak like that, and i'm not excited because it ends the trilogy, i'm excited becaise i have so many ideas.**

* * *

**I know it's short, but it happens, and I want toast (ok that was a bit random), I'm also going to go and watch one of the old St Trinians movies, because I am now officially St. Trinians obsessed, ever since I saw the new one on Saturday.**

* * *

**I'm gonna go now, so I can get toast and hot cocoa, and watch St Trinians, and then possible get more toast and hot cocoa, which I doubt, because it's like, ten to ten at night already, and if I get more toast and hot cocoa when the movie has finished, it'll be like, midnight, and my parents would moan, but to try and cut that hugely boring description short, I'm going offline.**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!!!!**


	24. Revelations

**Today, was boring, The Bill is about to start, it's the third out of eight in an arc called Witness, tonight's it's actually Witness: Deadly secret, intriguing, it's just started, literally just this sec, as I'm writing this.**

* * *

**I'm still bored, I have hardly any ramble, I rambled myself out in Getting through yesterday, how sad is that?**

* * *

**Have you ever done that thing, where you start laughing and don't know why, then when you try and figure out why you're laughing, you realise you don't know why your laughing, and you laugh harder? I do that all the time.**

* * *

**Kerry made a dog on puzzle pirates, and named it after out school careers manager, so I told the careers manager today, and she said that it's nice that we think of her, but thinking of her like that is weird, because we said she's a dog.**

**On the subject of the careers manager, she got a new book with career information in it, but I prefer the old one, because that one had Circus Performer in it as a possible career and the new one doesn't.**

* * *

**Our English teacher asked us if we had any questions about the mocks today, and I was thinking, ' Yeah, I have a question, do we have to take them?' Any idea as to what she would have said?**

* * *

**I just put a new poll up!!!**

* * *

**There is a Zoey 101 advert on TV, I don't like that show, I used to, but now I find it stupid, it annoys me, and it's not on Disney, and over the past few weeks that any kids shows that aren't on Disney with the exception of Unfabulous and Nick Movies, are complete rubbish, but that's just a matter of opinion.**

* * *

**I like Chocolate Milkshake, strangely enough, it tastes like chocolate, and I've had about four glasses of it since I got home from school.**

* * *

**Have you ever had Hoola Hoops crisps, and twiglets, and put a hoop around the twiglet and eaten it, I have, you can't taste the twiglet, it's all hoop, but it's good, what this has to do with the story, I don't know, I just thought you'd like that little snippet of information.**

**Snippet, that's a good word, almost as good as spiggin.**

* * *

**I'm sad, I have no new e-mails, I haven't had one in like, half an hour, and It's heartbreaking, nobody loves me, well, that or nobody has updated their stories, which is worse, it means I have nothing to read.**

* * *

**OMG, it's terrible,, I've ran out of milkshake, I need to go and get more, maybe I should have Banana next time, or maybe strawberry, do we even have any strawberry, I should ask, I know we have chocolate and banana for a fact, but I never checked on strawberry., do you think they should create a mint milkshake, personally I think that would be disgusting, hey, how about an orange milkshake, an organic orange milkshake, that sounds randomly insane, that's gonna be my new description – Paigeleanne92 : Randomly insane.**

* * *

**Here's something for you to think about:**

**What occurs once in every minute, twice in every moment, yet never in a thousand years?**

**I know it, I know it, **

**It's**

**Really**

**Easy**

**So**

**Easy**

**Infact**

**It**

**Is**

**Unbelievable**

**My**

**Dad**

**Didn't**

**Get**

**It**

**Neither**

**Did**

**Kerry**

**The**

**Answer**

**Is**

**Coming**

**Up**

**In**

**Five**

**Four**

**Three**

**Two**

**One**

**THE LETTER M!!**

* * *

**Can any of you say supercalifragelisticexbialidocious backwards like they do in the song, Kerry and me can.**

* * *

**Can anyone also say Eeenie Meenie mackaracka rare rye dominacka, jicka poka lollipop rompompooshay, my mom has been saying it to me since I was little, I don't know what it means, all I know is it's fun to say, I even taught Kerry.**

* * *

**Ok, now you have an amazingly long ramble that I wasn't even sure I could do, (I'm so proud of myself, I found something to ramble about) I will get on with the story, you must be so happy now, I'm finally shutting up. This ramble is a two and three quarter pages long, that's longer than yesterday's Getting through ramble (Haha, Christi Crawley, still not old in my mind, reminds me of creepy crawly, what does it remind you of?).**

* * *

**Haha, I just realised I spelt because wrong in the authors notes at the end of the last chapter. **

* * *

**Ok, seriously now, onto the story.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV (because I said so)**

"So," Troy started, watching me carefully, "tell me what happened,"

"There's nothing to tell," I lied, "Katelyn brought Kieran here because he wanted to apologise, he told me he's planning on sticking around, and they left,"

"How is that nothing?" I asked, "that is not nothing, Kieran is dangerous, you told Isobel that, there's no point in saying it to her if you don't believe it yourself, she'll find out if you've been telling her things and not following your own advice,"

"Isobel can look after herself," I pointed out, "she's eighteen, she's not a kid anymore, besides, she has mom and dad, Evan and Carly, she has more than just me to help her,"

"She listens to you more than anyone else," he argued, "she always has,"

"Wait a minute," I stalled, "if Kieran is the topic of conversation, why are we talking about Isobel?"

"She's involved," he stated, "she's the one that went to him because none of us would explain things properly, so we can't keep her out of this."

"No," I refused, "Isobel stays out of this,"

"Gabi…" he started.

"Don't try that, I don't want my baby sister near him, like you said, he's dangerous," I cut him off.

"And like you said, Isobel's not a baby anymore," he replied, "She can handle it."

"I don't what her to handle it," I argued, "this is my battle, I have to fight it myself,"

"By yourself?" he questioned, "now you know that's not going to happen,"

"With you then," I relented, "But not with Isobel, and before you even try it, definitely not with my parents,"

"I can get us away from this, you know," he told me, making me turn to him curiously, prompting him to continue, "Last week I got an offer,"

"Intriguing," I commented, watching him intently.

"I've been offered a contract with the Lakers," he elaborated, "I said I'd have to talk to you about it first, and that we had a lot to consider, but now Kieran's back, I think it's something we really should consider."

"We'd be leaving everything behind," I sighed, "My family, your parents, our friends, my job,"

"Chad's been offered a similar contract," he explained, "they've been looking for relatively new talent, three years behind me apparently makes me perfect, I have skill and experience, and I can't stay with the thunderbirds forever, that was never my life plan, and I know LA is far, very far, and I was originally planning on a move that wouldn't take us so far away, but right now we need to get away, and if Kieran's staying moving seems the only sensible option."

"Taylor won't go," I told him, noting the confusion on his face, "She and Chad are having problems, she won't go unless that is sorted, she's not that stupid, she won't want to end up stranded in LA,"

"I know they're having problems," he explained, "it's because he's hiding something, but it's not that bad, he loves her, he's not stupid, well maybe he is being a bit stupid right now for not telling her like I said he should but he wouldn't do that to her, or to Soph and Ty, you saw him when he picked them up,"

"You know?" she gasped, surprised that she had never suspected it before.

"Yeah, he needed to tell someone," Troy answered, "it's bad, ok, but for him, not for their relationship, he doesn't want to tell her because he's not ready to accept it yet,"

"I can hardly tell her to come to LA because you said it's not bad for their relationship and he doesn't want to accept what's happening," I pointed out, "that won't work, she deserves to know what's going on,"

"Really?" he asked, "you really think that her finding out that Chad's mother is dying will do her any favours?"

"Dying?" I stuttered, "That's why she wasn't at the anniversary party,"

He nodded, "so… LA?"

"How long would it take?" I questioned, "to sort everything out?"

"Is that a yes?" He quizzed, smiling as I nodded, "you sure you don't want to think about it?"

"I just was thinking about it," I explained, "and it makes sense, to get away from Kevin, and from Kieran, to get away from this place that has brought quite a lot of pain over the years, sure my parents won't like it, your parents, well your mom won't like it, you'll dad will probably love it, but we'll stay in touch, and we can come back for Christmas, and maybe thanksgiving and birthdays, but it makes more sense than staying around here,"

He nodded, knowing that I wasn't finished.

"But someone's going to have to tell Taylor everything," I added, "she'll never come unless she knows, and he shouldn't be hiding that from her anyway, she can help him get through it, but he's not letting her, he's punishing himself, thinking that he's protecting her, but he's not he's just hurting her, she has to know,"

"I'll talk to him," he assured, "and if he doesn't tell her then, we will, together, no matter what Chad says about it."

I nodded, smiling as I moved over to sit on the couch next to him, laying my head on his chest as he wrapped his arm around me.

"I'm glad we had this talk," I smiled, "God knows we needed it,"

I felt him kiss my forehead before saying, "now all we have to do is convince Chad and Taylor that it works,"

I nodded as Tamsin ran downstairs, zooming into the room.

"Tam, don't run in the house, especially not on the stairs, you could hurt yourself," I scolded protectively.

"But mommy, Sophie told me today that her daddy told her that she might be moving, I don't want her to move," Tamsin complained.

"We might be moving too," I told her, watching her carefully for her reaction, "to the same place as Sophie,"

"So I'll still see Sophie," Tamsin stated, smiling, she suddenly spoke as if the previous queries about Sophie hadn't happened, "I use daddy as a pillow too, mommy,"

I smiled, "Yeah, daddy's a comfortable pillow, isn't he,"

"I'm being compared to a pillow," Troy laughed, "and strangely enough I wouldn't have it any other way,"

* * *

**I wasn't going to end it there, but it seems right, and it's cute, but the chapter was just fluffy, but I'm not going to gag (apparently gagging is good, it was on The Suite Life) because I'm happy, because it's a kinda ok chapter, it was alright lengthwise even though it was mostly rambling authors notes, I have revealed one of the big story secrets to you and even more importantly, WE HAVE STRAWBERRY MILKSHAKE!!!**

* * *

**What's your favourite flavour of milkshake?**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!**


	25. Bliss

**I have something amazing that you will want to know, it started half an hour ago when I walked into the kitchen (yes, I did go in there to make milkshake), anyways, I opened the fridge to get the milk, and both of my cats were in the room, and one walked towards me, and the other attacked him, so my cats were having a cat fight.**

**Told ya you wanted to know that.**

* * *

**What is it with everyone and chocolate milkshake, everyone that answered the question says their favourite is chocolate, ok, so it's my favourite too, but seriously, chocolate milkshake can't be everyone's favourite, I'm seriously considering switching to strawberry, it makes the milk go pink, and pink milk is even better than pink jelly.**

* * *

**I've just been catching up on the awesome stories I have on alert, they are still awesome.**

* * *

**I just got back from school for the second time today, we had some options thing, It was cool, but it like, was on top of my writing time, damn school, that's why I'm writing right now, its kinda late for me but I don't believe in deprivation, the next chapter of getting through, which, if your lucky, may be up in the next five years. Ok, seriously, maybe the next two weeks, I have more ideas for Impossible Perfection and Making it right at this moment, so I'm considering maybe taking a Making it Right idea and putting it in getting through, but I don't know which one, because they all go better in Making it Right.**

**I have decided I am definitely going to continue with Psychology, because it helped me diagnose myself with stress, lol, no not really, actually because I'm good at it, I enjoy it, the head of psychology is nice, she made me laugh using psychological jokes (which nobody has ever been able to do before), and she told me that if I get a good grade in GCSE Psychology, then I don't need a C in GCSE Maths to take AS Level Psychology, but that is the only one I'm sure of, I get three more options, it's gonna be weird taking only three subjects, I have nine at the minute, and I think I'm overworked, so maybe four will be a nice change.**

**I have a science exam tomorrow, it's the real thing, mocks are next week, but it's cool, because the exam gets me out of Phys ed, and seeing as I hate movement, that is a good thing.**

* * *

**Anyway's, school is boring, back to randomness:**

**Who likes war poetry?**

**I wrote a war poem, the first stanza (verse, my English teacher makes us say stanza and I got used to it) is this:**

**Bloody Trenches**

**Rain-soaked land**

**Death lurks near**

**For all things here**

**Though none of this we had planned.**

**I like it, because it's depressing, depression equals dramatic, and everyone knows how much I love drama. It's old though; I wrote it when I was twelve.**

* * *

**Did you know, that I'm going to die of the common cold, it's one of my life aims, just thought you'd be interested.**

* * *

**One day, last year, it was in 2007, so it was last year, I went with my mom, to pick up my sister and the kids that my mom looks after (she's a childminder), and one of them, said something, and I annoyed her with it.**

**Chloe: Leanne, Do you know what?**

**Me: No I don't know what.**

**Chloe: Well**

**Me: (interrupts as usual) is what nice?**

**Chloe: Don't be silly, do you know what?**

**Me: No I don't know what, is what nice? I thought we'd got past this bit.**

**Chloe: Stop being silly, do you know what?**

**Me: Here we go again, I already said, No, I don't know what, is what nice?**

**Chloe: Nooo**

**Me: What's not nice, do you want me to beat what up?**

**Chloe: No, do you know what?**

**Me: No, Jade, do you know what?**

**Jade: What's what?**

**Me: Chloe keeps asking me if I know what, I just wanted to know if you know who what is.**

**Jade: No, I don't know what.**

**Me: Ok. Chlo, tell us about what.**

**Chloe: Stop being silly, do you know what?**

**Me: How are we being silly, you're the one that keeps asking if we know what.**

**Ok, that went on for a while so I'm going to leave it there, I think you'd understand it by now.**

* * *

**Have I ever told you about instant hot chocolate chicken?**

**I was round my friend's house once, and her brother started going, **

"**You have instant tea, instant coffee and instant hot chocolate, what's next, instant chicken?" **

**And I said, "No, instant hot chocolate chicken," **

**And he went, "What?!"**

**And I said, "It's simple, you get the instant hot chocolate and pour it over the instant chicken and you have instant hot chocolate chicken, duh!"**

**I thought it was pretty simple.**

* * *

**Great news people, I have an email from Mcgreys fans, isn't that great, it means greys anatomy news, I'm so happy, all greys anatomy addicts would be though.**

* * *

**Hey, maybe I should delete the chapter and just put up the authors notes, then again, maybe not, the whole update would be pointless then, unless your Kerry and live for my authors notes.**

* * *

**I'm listening to Vanessa Hudgens songs right now, they're at the start of my mp3, and changing the song by pressing next isn't an option, besides, I like the songs, I like most music though, I'm singing along too, my mom is getting annoyed, but come on, how can I not sing never underestimate a girl out loud when my brother is in the room, it works.**

* * *

**Why are brothers so annoying? I'm glad Tamsin and Kirra don't have a brother, I wouldn't put them through that pain anyway (or would I?) I know, I know, I'm being mysterious, mystery is good though, hey here's a random thought, I could just quit the ramble and let you read the chapter, now is that a good idea, quitting the ramble, because we all know how much Kerry loves the ramble, mentalist.**

* * *

**Oh yeah, by the way, Sophie, is going to grow up with the personality of my friend Sophie, because I hardly see my friend Sophie much, although I will hopefully see her more next year when she starts my school, but Sophie's a legend, a legendary nuisance, jokes, geez don't have a fit.**

* * *

**Ok, onto the chapter.**

* * *

**My POV**

Sheep and lemons rule, I love sheep and lemons, they should rule the world forever, they are much better than Donkeys.

* * *

**Lol ok seriously, the real chapter:**

* * *

**Troy's POV (which isn't as great and as important as mine)**

"Daaaaaaaaadddddyyyyyyy," Tamsin whined from the front door of her grandparent's house.

"Taaaaaammmmmmmmmmyyyyyyy," I answered, mimicking her to make her laugh.

"When we tell about moving?" she questioned, gazing up at me expectantly.

"We're telling them today," I explained, "that's why we came here,"

Gabriella disappeared with Kirra as soon as we were in the house after her mother started rambling about some recipe of other.

"Daddy, when we go?" Tamsin asked, still watching me.

"After Christmas," I told her, knowing that she wasn't asking when we were leaving her grandparents house.

"Kirra come too?" she quizzed, looking confused.

"Yes, honey," I laughed, "Kirra's coming too."

"Why?" she asked, "we leave Kirra here and me and you and mommy go,"

"Don't you think you'd miss Kirra?" I questioned, still laughing.

She shook her head, "Nooo, because Kirra cry all the time, and she take Cappy Chav, and Cappy Chav mine,"

"Do you think mommy and daddy will miss Kirra?" He asked, pausing as she thought about it.

"Auntie Isobel and Auntie Carly miss Kirra if she come," she tried, "so Kirra not come,"

"Hi Troy," I heard Carly greet as the front door opened, I watched as she took Tamsin's hand and begun leading her away, "Bye, Troy,"

"Bwye Bwye, Daddy," Tamsin called behind her, giggling as her aunt pulled her into the lounge.

I smirked at Carly's typical behaviour, and my daughter's even more typical reaction. Carly always dragged Tamsin off the first moment she saw her, it was like an unwritten law, and the kid always came back covered from head to two in so much sparkly make-up that she was shiny enough to give Sharpay a run for her money. When asked why she gave her niece weekly makeovers, Carly only ever insisted it was because she was the cool aunt, a point that Tamsin seemed to back up.

I smiled, making my way into the kitchen, knowing Carly and Tamsin would just push me out of the room if I tried getting near, heading towards my wife and younger daughter was a safer bet.

"Carly's hijacked Tam," I told them as I walked into the room.

"Can you take Kirra then?" Gabriella quizzed, "I have to go over this recipe with mom,"

I smiled at the sight, just a few years ago I never thought I'd live to see Gabriella cooking, but now it was like a hobby to her.

"Sure," I agreed, picking the toddler up off of the floor.

"Fwind Ebwan," she insisted, grinning at me.

"Evans home?" I directed at my mother-in-law.

"Yes, got back last night for the Christmas holidays," Maria answered, smiling.

"Two weeks before Christmas?" I questioned, confused, knowing that he wouldn't have dropped out; it just wasn't who he was.

"Yeah, extended holiday time or something like that, something about some other exams going on at the minute and the students taking them needing little distractions," she explained.

I nodded, opting on taking Kirra into the yard.

"Ebwan," she insisted, pointing at the nineteen year old whom was kicking a ball around the yard with Isobel.

"Kirry," he smiled as he ran over, he turned to me as he reached us, "can I keep her?"

I laughed as Kirra stuck her tongue out at him and clung tighter to me.

"My daddy," she insisted, "Ebwan silly,"

"You say that now Kirry, but one day you're going to wish you lived with me instead of your elevated IQ mom and lunkhead dad," Evan joked.

"Uncle Cwad Lumkead," Kirra giggled.

I smiled as I noticed Isobel was walking towards us.

"Is Evan threatening to steal you again, Kirra?" The teen asked, "don't worry, he won't get very far,"

"Isbel," Kirra announced to me, pointing at her.

"Yeah," I agreed, "that's Isobel isn't it?"

"Grampy," she smiled proudly, pointing over at Andrew.

I nodded in agreement, smiling at her acknowledgement of everyone.

"Hey, Kirra," he called back.

"We see Grampy?" she asked me.

"Yeah," I answered, walking over to the garden table and sitting next to him as Evan and Isobel resumed the game.

"She looks more and more like my daughter everyday," Andrew commented, ruffling her hair.

"Yep," I agreed, "she's gonna be a heartbreaker one day, not too soon though, maybe when she's forty,"

"Spoken like a true father," Andrew commented, "but no matter how hard you try to keep them young, they always grow up, just look at mine now, Gabriella's married, Evan's at college, Isobel's about to graduate, and Carly, she's head cheerleader, which is an achievement in itself but she doesn't let it get her grades down, they're growing up."

"You're not gonna grow up, are you Kirra?" I smiled.

"No, no, no, no, no" she insisted, starting to pull my hair like she always did.

"That's good," I told her, "You're gonna be a little baby forever,"

Kirra nodded, pulling my hair so fiercely that she pulled my head forward a fraction.

"Me pull daddy hair," she giggled, looking over at Andrew.

"Does daddy want you to pull his hair?" Andrew questioned her.

She widened her eyes as she decided, "yes, yes, yes,"

Andrew smiled, looking back to me, "they cooking?"

I nodded, "Kirra and I have been officially banished from the kitchen,"

"Count yourself lucky, Maria tried to get me to join in yesterday, she was baking cookies with Carly," Andrew explained, "I sure was quick to get out of there, I told them I promised Bel I'd help her with her chem. Homework, lucky for me Bel backed up that story, I now apparently owe her,"

"Is bargaining with your daughter really a good idea," I commented, forever on edge to stop myself saying stepdaughter, he hated it when people said that.

"Probably not," he admitted, "but it was that or cooking, there was actually something I needed to tell you, you know, away from my daughter and from little ears,"

I nodded as he gestured to Kirra, "sweetie, do you want to go play with Uncle Evan and Auntie Isobel?"

She nodded enthusiastically, Evan walking over to us as soon as he heard his name; he'd obviously been listening to the conversation.

"Are you gonna tell him about…" Evan began, stopping as Andrew nodded, "Come on Kirry, I beat you and Bel can't beat me,"

Kirra squealed as Evan took her out of my grip and started spinning her around, making his way back to Isobel with her.

"It's Isobel," Andrew started, "I caught her doing something she shouldn't the other day,"

"Wouldn't you normally tell Maria and Gabi, I'm used to hearing these things second-hand," I pointed out.

"Maria knows, we decided not to tell Gabi, it'll just hurt her, we just felt we should tell you what she was planning to do," he explained, "As you know, Kieran's back, Gabi told us he was pestering her,"

He paused as I nodded, "Yeah, we talked about that,"

"Isobel was going to go and see Kevin," Andrew continued, "because Kevin dealt with Kieran this time, she probably figured that he could again, she didn't think about what has happened since then, she just figured that she needed someone to help her sister, she didn't get there, I saw her walking in the opposite direction of home, I stopped her, she admitted it in the end, I didn't let her go,"

"But you don't think she really listened?" I questioned, knowing that there was something else.

"No," he admitted, "and I was hoping you could talk to her, you know, tell her how Gabi would feel about it, she trusts you when it comes to everything about her sister, she'd believe you if you told her how Gabi would feel, it's not that I've had any trouble over it since from her, I just, need to be sure, you know, and if Kieran's sticking around like he says he is, I won't know what to do with either of them,"

"I'll talk to her," I promised, just as I had promised to talk to Chad the previous day, "but you don't need to worry about Kieran staying around, that was the main reason for us coming earlier today, we're moving,"

"Moving?" Andrew quizzed, leaving me unsure as to whether or not this was a good or bad thing, "where to?"

"LA," I relented, "but I've thought about it more since Gabi and I talked about it, if she's not here, Kieran will have no reason to stick around, sure he'll know that we're in LA, but he won't know where in LA we are, so hopefully he'll leave us all alone then,"

"Logical thinking, I guess," Andrew decided.

"Don't see it as losing her," I told him, "You're not losing her, think of it as, she's going off to college all over again, just, for longer this time,"

"I hated it when she was in college," he smiled, "but you need to do this, you need to protect them, it's not my job to protect her anymore, taking them away from here may be the best way for you to do that,"

I nodded, understanding that he agreed as I turned my attention to my younger daughter, whom was walking towards a ball and repeatedly kicking it about a foot whenever she reached it.

**Gabriella's POV**

"He told me he had to help Bel with chemistry homework," mom laughed, "Bel doesn't even take chemistry,"

"Anything to get out of cooking," I laughed, "typical man, Troy will help sometimes though, if I ask he will anyway, he'll never offer, but I don't really mind, I prefer cooking alone than with someone who's not experienced,"

"So, no trouble between you two at the minute?" she asked, jumping straight into mom-mode.

"We talked it all out last night," I explained, "we also decided on something mom, and I don't know how you're going to take it,"

"What is it?" she quizzed, "you're going to have to tell me eventually, so get it over with,"

"We're moving," I blurted out, "to LA, we just think it's best you know, Troy's had a job offer and Kieran's here and staying, it makes more sense if we're not here,"

"I wasn't expecting you to stay in Albuquerque forever," mom smiled, "I'm surprised you were here this long, all I can say is, I'll miss you, all four of you, but I'm not going to try and stop you, it's your decision, and I think it's the right one, even if it doesn't feel like it closer to the moving date, when is that, anyway?"

"We haven't arranged it yet," I told her, "we only decided last night, we have quite a bit to sort out before we leave, it won't be until after Christmas at least,"

"You're gonna kill me," she smiled at me, "you mentioned Christmas and it reminded me, you are going to kill me,"

"Mom," I said sternly, trying to get it out of her.

"I can't tell you," she argued, "where's the surprise in that? Besides it's not just what I've got for you that you're gonna kill me for, it's the things for Troy and the girls aswell,"

"Mom," I repeated, "I told you not to spend too much if you had to at all,"

"Last time I checked, I was your mom, and I didn't take instructions from you," she replied, "just because you have your own kids now doesn't mean I'm willing to stop parenting you, and fussing over you, worrying about you,"

"And spoiling us," I added to the list, "it's amazing that I'm not a complete materialist, with dad's money and your tendency to spend dad's money"

"I spend my own money, thank you very much," mom teased, then added jokily, "and then when I run out it's onto your fathers credit card,"

"And he doesn't mind?" I quizzed, "If that's the case I might make a withdrawal from the bank of dad,"

"Isobel and Carly do that enough," mom commented, "you and Evan are the only ones we don't have to worry about money-wise, yet we still do,"

"What don't you worry about, mom?" I smiled, "you even worry about burning food,"

"My cooking has to be perfect," she retorted.

"Perfectionist," I muttered, just loud enough for her to hear me.

I watched as she smiled at me then looked back down to the celery she was chopping for the salad, whistling a tune like I always remember her doing during my childhood.

* * *

**Wow, longsomeness (over 3000 words), I never cease to amaze myself.**

* * *

**Anyways, I need to go get milkshake, and watch a DVD,**

**So, REVIEW and I might be persuaded to update tomorrow or Saturday.**


	26. Harsh

**This is short, but I'm quitting the ramble for today, mainly because I'm watching HSM2 DVD extra's, and they demand my full attention.**

* * *

**I think it's time for another **

**Disclaimer: I do not own HSM, it's a very sad fact, if someone is willing to buy it for me I would not object, but until then, I own nothing, (except Tamsin and Kirra, and Katelyn, and Kieran, and Kevin and Josh, and Sophie, and Tyler, and Anita, and Tia, and Andrew, and Isobel, and Carly, and Evan and Charlie, and Suzanne and Lucy, and Allie, and Michael and Chelsea and Ella and Becca, and the rest of the cheerleaders.) Hmmm, come to think of it, I do own something, my wonderful characters, the ones that I created. I also do not own the film stepsister from planet weird, it's not actually referenced to, but the phrase is used.**

* * *

**Ok, some dates, just to help with the times:**

**Isobel's birthday: 21****st**** November**

**Evan's birthday: 30****th**** November**

**Carly's birthday: 5****th**** December**

**Gabriella's birthday: 18****th**** February**

**Tamsin's birthday: 3****rd**** December**

**Kirra's birthday: 6****th**** March (Guess why, Kerry)**

**Chad and Taylor's Anniversary: 8****th**** December**

**This chapter is on December 16th; I was getting a bit confused with dates myself.**

* * *

**That'd make a great poll, which, out of the characters I have created, is your favourite? I think I'll make that now actually, or maybe tomorrow, remind me.**

* * *

**So, onto the chapter:**

* * *

**Carly's POV**

"There's your sister again," Chelsea muttered under her breath somewhat meanly.

"I already told you Chels, she's not my sister," I replied, "she's my stepsister, there's a difference"

"Talk about stepsister from planet weird," Becca commented.

"You can't expect her to be normal," I exclaimed, knowing I'd come to regret what I said later on, "her father just got out of prison, he was in there for attempted murder,"

"Hey," Ella smiled, "what are the chances that she'll be the same,"

I fake laughed so as not to make my friends suspicious, what had happened to make Isobel and I semi-hate eachother over the past two weeks was a mystery, but there now was a sudden thin layer of hate that always had us making cruel jibes at eachother, I didn't like it, but backing off would be letting her win when she makes comments around me. I have no idea what I'm going to do when dad notices.

"Oh my god!" Becca suddenly gasped, "the freak's heading this way,"

"Carly," Isobel snapped as she reached us.

"Isobel," I answered in the same blunt tone, "Problem?"

"Did dad tell you about LA?" she quizzed.

"Yes, MY dad did tell me that our shared sister is moving to LA" I stated, harshly, "I believe it's your fault, actually,"

"What?" Isobel rushed, "Gabi decides to move to LA and it's my fault? More like she couldn't wait to get Tam away from you, she's four, why the hell do you keep putting makeup on her?"

"Who's Tam?" Chelsea quizzed, not knowing that her lack of knowledge on my family bothered me.

"It's called style Isobel," I smirked, ignoring my friend, "not that you'd know anything about that,"

"What is you problem?" I heard another voice ask, and turned to see my stepsister's two best friends had joined her, "you two are meant to be family,"

"She's not my family," I denied, "we just happen to share a sister, mean's nothing, you know Luce, you were so close to being one of us, you have cheerleader potential, but now, of course, it's too late,"

"I wouldn't wanna be one of you," Lucy shot back, glaring at me like I was, well, a cheerleader.

"One day you'll regret ever thinking like that" I told her, knowing that it probably wasn't true, Lucy wasn't the sort of girl that regretted anything, ever.

"I highly doubt it," Lucy snapped, before trying to turn Isobel around.

"You know why I actually came over here?" Isobel quizzed, shrugging her friend off.

"I don't really care," I tried, but inside I was curious, she hardly ever approached me at school anymore, I wanted to know why today was different.

"Gabi called this morning," she started, "I'm babysitting the girls tonight, I was gonna ask if you wanted to come seeing as how you love being around them, but I changed my mind, I don't want you there, they'd sense the bad atmosphere, and you know how Tammy likes to talk,"

"Who the hell is Tammy?" Chelsea asked from behind me.

"My niece," I answered quickly before turning back to Isobel's now retreating figure, Lucy and Allie quickly following behind her, "Isobel's niece, one of the few things we have in common,"

"I really like, hate your sister," Ella decided, looking right at me, "you should totally date that Michael Warner dude just to spite her,"

"Shut up, Ella," I demanded, "although the Michael thing may be a good idea, he's hot, you may actually be on to something for once in your life, good girl,"

I caught the smile that appeared on her face as I started glancing around the cafeteria, spotting my prey.

"I'll be right back," I stated, grinning as I left my three friends at the table.

I walked quickly over to him. Formulating a plan in my head, Ella was right, this was the way to get Isobel back for anything bad she may have done to me.

"MICHAEL," I called, walking over to him.

"Erm, hey, er Carly," he greeted, stuttering between words.

"Long time no see," I smiled sweetly, "I've missed you,"

"You hate me," he stated, "you have ever since the Isobel thing, which, as I'm sure you know has been sorted now.

"I don't hate you, silly," I giggled, "how could I hate you?"

"What's up with you today Carly, you're acting weird, are you sick?" Michael quizzed.

What is this guy? Stupid? What the hell does Isobel see in him?

"I'm perfectly fine," I grinned, trying to hide my inner disgust so I could concentrate on my desire for payback, sure he was hot, but he was my sister's boyfriend, that's just wrong, "how are you?"

"Erm, I'm going to go," he tried, "I'll see you a…"

He cut off as I kissed him, noticing that Isobel had just re-entered the room, smirking to myself I pulled away, walking back to my friends.

"Is he a good kisser?" Becca quizzed as soon as I reached them.

"Hell yeah," I answered truthfully, glancing around to see if I could spot Isobel, she had disappeared along with her friends, as had Michael.

I hated myself for doing that, but she asked for it, didn't she?

**Gabriella's POV**

"SHE KISSED HIM!" I exclaimed, shocked by what my sister had told me, "why?"

"Because she hates me," Isobel insisted, "I don't know why, I don't know what changed all I know is that something did,"

"Well, seventeen is a weird age," I tried, knowing that none of the three girls would fall for it.

"No, Brie," Allie confirmed my thoughts, "Thirteen is a weird age, sometimes fourteen, but by the time you hit seventeen you're used to it, she knew exactly what she was doing,"

"Well what did Michael say?" I asked, wanting all sides of the story.

"We haven't talked to him," Lucy explained, "It's the second time, Gab, the second time in two months,"

"Ok, guys, can you please stop calling me different things it's getting confusing," I smiled, trying to lighten the mood, "Gab, Gabi, Brie, soon I'll have Tamsin in here calling me mommy, and I'm only one person, one person with way too many nicknames,"

"You're not funny," Isobel smirked, momentarily cheered up, before dropping back to her glum demeanour.

"You should talk to him," I insisted, "you know you should,"

"And Carly?" she questioned, "I can't deal with her right now, and I'd have to deal with her at home,"

"Bel, relax," I demanded, "you can stay here tonight, we should be late home anyway, I'll tell mom it's because of babysitting and there was no point in you going home that late, Carly is now my problem, not yours, I'll deal with her, but you know, if you three don't get back to school, you're all going to get into trouble, cutting class, whatever were you thinking"

"I seem to remember a certain someone skipping a whole day of classes because of a misunderstanding with her boyfriend," Isobel pointed out, **(Reference: Last few chapters of heartbreak)**

"And that's one thing that Carly doesn't know," I pointed out, trying to keep the topic fresh in her mind, I wanted to talk about it more later when it was just the two of us.

Isobel nodded as Allie gasped, "You really missed a whole day of classes?"

"School," I ordered before the conversation could continue, "Now, go,"

"Yes, boss," Isobel, joked, "anyone would think you're my mother,"

"I'm much too young to be your mother," I pointed out, "I'm still told I look too young to have graduated college, gotten married and had two kids,"

"Do you go up to random people on the street and tell them your life story?" Isobel asked cheekily.

"Yeah," I answered, "they always seem to like the parts about how annoying you are,"

"Whatevs," my sister answered, "Seeya sis, love ya, or do I,"

"Of course you do," I smiled, "the question is, do I love you?"

"No, you love the mailbox," Isobel smirked in reply.

"How could anyone not love that mailbox Izzie?" Allie questioned, "IT'S FRICKIN PINK!"

"Exactly," I agreed in unison with Isobel and Lucy's "Shut up Allie,"

"Nobody tells Allie to shut up," Allie replied, "Allie resents that,"

"Oh god, not that again," Lucy complained.

I laughed as the three of them walked out of the house, knowing that they were in for a long day if Allie kept speaking like that, but then again, that may not be a bad thing, in the meantime, I have other things to deal with. I wouldn't usually interfere, but Taylor needs me to, right?

* * *

**You know, when i start writing a chapter, i always know roughly where i wanted it to go, but i didn't with this one and i'm not rally sure what i think of it, so i'm going to need you to make my mind up for me, REVIEW!!!**


	27. Talk

**Thanks to Kerry, Making it right will not be updated for another week, ok, see, it's a cruel punishment, anyways, mini serious-rant over, onto the random rant.**

* * *

**I'M WATCING HSM1!!!! EXCITING TIMES!!**

* * *

**Why I'm watching one and not two, I'm not entirely sure, it may be because I watched two yesterday with my sister, or it may be that I decided to watch them in order yesterday, yeah, that's it, in order, I'm gonna put two on after.**

* * *

**On the sims2 yesterday, I built a house, furnished it, moved a family in, and forgot to put a roof on it!!!!**

* * *

**I miss playing piano, I might go play that now, for the mere reason that I can, or maybe I'll go and actually learn how to play my guitar, but that has a snapped string, so that's gonna be kinda hard.**

* * *

**Hey does anyone think that the girl with stage fright at the musicale auditions in HSM1 is actually just speechless because she's seen Troy there, just a thought.**

* * *

**OMG, I completely forgot I put my DVD on sing along, what I've been looking for (R S) just started and I was sitting her wondering why the words were appearing on the bottom of the screen!!**

* * *

**Oh, I'm not ranting about milkshake now am I, one sec:**

**Here's some milkshake information:**

**A milkshake is a sweet, cold beverage which is made from milk, ice cream or iced milk, and sweet flavorings such as fruit syrup or chocolate sauce in Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the rest of the English-speaking world, excluding some regions of the United States. Milkshakes are usually served in a tall glass with a straw, and whipped cream may be added as a topping. Three popular milkshake flavors are vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry.**

**Full-service restaurants, soda fountains, and diners usually prepare and mix the shake "by hand" from scoops of actual ice cream and milk in a blender or drink mixer using a stainless steel cup. Fast food outlets do not use actual ice cream, but manufacture their shakes in milkshake machines which freeze and serve a premade milkshake mixture. Throughout the United States, especially in fast food and casual dining restaurants, a **_**milkshake**_** may be referred to as a **_**shake**_

**The UK chain Shakeaway offers over 100 different ingredients to which can be added to milk and ice cream-based milkshakes, including oreos, strawberry trifle, peanut butter, and Tic tacs.**

**Aren't we all so much more informed on milkshakes now we know that? And I'm sorry but tic tacs in milkshake, ewwwwwwwwwwwww, they're breath mints.**

* * *

**Did you know there's a kids TV show called Milkshake, it's like SMTV live was, it's presented and they put random shows on every now and again, it's on Channel five in England every weekend, I used to watch a show on it called The Tribe (and it's spin-off, the new tomorrow), I actually just googled them, and got a few of the songs, I didn't realise how much I missed it until now, I'm going to bring one of the songs, even though it's kinda depressing if you think about it with the show, into a oneshot or making it right actually, I love the song, and I love my stories (I love all of my stories it, even if they are just plain bad, it's an achievement, anyways just fits better in making it right, and a oneshot in can fit in).**

* * *

**Ok, I'm bored of ramble, read:**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

"Taylor," I greeted in a singsong voice as she opened her front door.

"You're not high, are you?" she quizzed, narrowing her eyes.

I gasped, mocking insult, "No I am not high, I do not get high, Katelyn gets high,"

"Katelyn used to get high," Taylor laughed, "and that was before I met her, I still can't believe that she admitted it,"

I smiled, nodding, "this isn't what I came here to talk about,"

"Didn't think so," Taylor admitted, "Is it the LA thing?"

I nodded as she let me into the house, "I figured that it'd be easier to talk about it while the guys have the kids,"

"Don't try and make my mind up for me," Taylor stated before I started talking.

"I'm not going to," I promised, "I just think you should know everything before you make a decision,"

"Everything?" she asked, clearly curious as she studied my face.

"First, I need to know if Chad's told you anything in the past twenty four hours, like he promised me he would," I explained, watching her expectantly.

"He hasn't said anything, Gab, literally, unless goodnight and good morning count," she complained, "I don't know what to do, he's acting so withdrawn,"

"He promised me he'd tell you," I told her, "I told him that if he hadn't told you by now that I would, he said he thinks it's fair, but he said he'd tell you,"

"Tell me what?" she asked, suddenly more alert than she had been.

"The reason he's been acting weird," I relented, "it's bad, but in a different way to what you think,"

"Gabi, just tell me," she insisted as we heard the front door open and the sound of children's voices.

Taylor was still watching me as I saw Chad appear in the doorway to the room, Taylor still hadn't seen him when he said, "Gab, don't, I should tell her,"

"Then why didn't you?" I questioned.

"I don't want it to be her problem, and if she knows it will be," he tried, but backed down at my glance as Troy appeared behind him with four children; all trying to get his attention.

"What don't you want to be my problem?" she asked him without turning around, "I'd rather know than deal with more of this wondering, I keep telling myself I can deal with it, but I really can't, I keep telling myself that I can trust you but I don't know anymore,"

"We're just going to, um, go to the kitchen," I heard Troy say as he gestured for me to follow him.

I stood up, going to follow him, stopping and turning back at the door, "you better tell her,"

"I will," Chad, insisted as I left the room completely, noticing that Troy had stopped in the kitchen.

"And we're going to make sure he does," he told me, sitting at the table, still holding Tyler, Kirra close at his feet.

"Where did Tam and Soph go?" I questioned, sitting next to him.

"Sophie's room," he told me, "I stopped listening at the world dolls,"

I nodded as Kirra came over to me, climbing onto my lap.

"My mommy," she insisted, watching Troy.

"Not my mommy?" he asked jokily.

"No," she told him, "my mommy,"

"Tamsin's mommy?" he continued asking.

"No, my mommy," Kirra carried on insisting.

"I'm Tamsin's mommy too, honey," I told her, "Your mommy and Tamsin's mommy, but I'm not daddy's mommy,"

Kirra nodded, settling into a peaceful silence.

"Possessive," Troy commented, still smiling, "put her down and come over here, see what she does,"

"She'll scream," I pointed out, "it'll disturb Chad and Taylor, they really need to talk,"

"Some other time then?" he asked, still smiling.

I rolled my eyes, deciding to ignore his question, "where are we going tonight, anyway?"

"Nowhere if we can't get a babysitter," he replied, now serious.

"Bel said she'd watch them," I told him, "she's a better bet than Carly would expect to get paid for it, Isobel's exact words were, gas money $25, candy $3, magazines to beat boredom $5, time with her nieces, priceless,"

"Does that mean she wants is to give her $33?" he questioned, smiling.

"Probably," I answered, returning his smile, "but I said she can stay tonight, so she's very likely to drop it."

"Why's she staying tonight?" he questioned, clearly curious.

"She's having problems with Carly, she doesn't think she can deal with her right now so I promised that she could stay at ours until I talked to Carly about it," I explained, "having sister's isn't easy,"

"No," Kirra agreed while shaking her head.

"Does she even understand what we're talking about?" Troy questioned, watching her, clearly amused.

"Probably not," I told him, smiling at her agreement.

"Kirra," he called, causing her to look round at him, "can I have mommy now?"

"No," she refused, hiding her face in my hair while muttering, "my mommy,"

"Who else is yours Kirra?" he asked her, trying to get her to continue interacting.

"Ibel," she informed him, then pointed over at him, "my daddy,"

"Isobel and daddy are yours aswell are they?" I questioned her.

She looked up and me while nodding, "Tam,"

"Tamsin's yours?" I asked, surprised that she'd included her sister.

"My Tam Tam," she grinned.

I smiled, my life seemed to be back on track, the only question was, Is Taylor's?

* * *

**I know it's short, but I'm revising for exams.**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!!**


	28. Together

**I was just reading can you forgive, No idea why, I just started reading it, it was sooo boring, I read like, three chapters, how did you guys put up with that?**

**

* * *

Guess how blonde i am? I was going to put this up last night, and i thought i did, but i didn't, and then i checked the story like five minutes ago, and was thinking, "i swear i put a chapter up last night," and then i checked the folder in my computer, it had this chapter, and the story didn't. That's how blonde i am.

* * *

I can't be bothered to rant; I guess I'm just being lazy, so, anyways, read.**

**Andrew's POV**

"Dad," I heard my daughter's distinct voice as soon as I walked through the door, "you're definitely coming, right?"

"Coming to what?" I questioned, utterly confused.

"The game, it's my first as captain," she reminded me.

"Carly, you're a cheerleader," I stated, wondering why she thought I needed to see her cheer at a basketball game,"

"Dad," she whined, "it's important to me,"

"I'll see what I can do," I told her, "it all depends on work, maybe Evan can go,"

"Dad, I want you to be there," she complained, "please,"

"Ok, ok," I relented, "I'll be there,"

"Thanks," she smiled as she ran upstairs, leaving me standing in the hall.

"You seem confused," Maria commented from the kitchen door, smiling at me.

"Carly," I sighed, she nodded.

"Teenage girls," she pointed out, "you'll never fully understand her."

"I understand Bel," I explained, "it's weird that I can't understand Carly, where is Bel anyway?"

"Babysitting for Gabi," Maria told me, "she's staying there tonight, promised she'll be at school tomorrow,"

"All night?" I asked, "being overworked?"

"She wanted to," Maria told me, "she wants to spend as much time as she can with the girls before they move,"

"When is that?" I questioned, hoping that she'd heard something.

"As far as I know some time in January," she answered, "they wanted to leave as soon as possible,"

"Thought they would," I admitted, "what's round here for them anymore apart from pain and misery from the past,"

"You feel better about this knowing that Evan will be near her?" Maria quizzed, watching me intently.

"Yeah," I relented, "I just need to know she's safe all the time, that all of them are safe, Evan won't let anything happen to her,"

"Isobel will probably be up there next year," she pointed out, "she'll want to go to college near her sister,"

I nodded in agreement as I followed her fully into the kitchen, both of us silently wondering how our children had grown up so fast.

Gabriella's POV 

"You think we'll still be able to do this in LA?" I questioned, looking out of the restaurant window.

"What? Eat?" Troy joked, "Yes, we will be able to eat in LA,"

"Not eat," I replied, "this,"

"I'm going to need you to be more specific," he pointed out, grinning.

I gestured around me, not really sure how to put it.

"You mean us time?" he questioned.

I nodded, "do you think we'll get it in LA, I mean, the publicity there will be much worse than what it is here, we won't know who we can trust with the girls, we'll never get time alone,"

"We will," he promised, "we'll work it all out, everything will be fine,"

I nodded, still unsure.

"Is that all that's bothering you?" he asked, obviously concerned.

"You wouldn't do that to me would you?" I quizzed, "keep something as big as what Chad kept from Taylor,"

He sighed, taking my hand over the table, "first of all, I'm going to kill Chad for ever giving you reason to think about that, second, no, I wouldn't be able to keep anything that big from you, I wouldn't want to either, you and the girls mean too much to me to ever risk leaving,"

"That's good to hear," I admitted, managing a genuine smile, "are you mad that I wondered?"

"Yeah, I'm mad," he answered, "mad at Chad, who keeps that kind of a secret from someone they love, if that happened to me, you'd be the first to know,"

I nodded, knowing that he was telling the truth, "You know, it's weird,"

"What's weird?" he asked.

"That in high school we were such a tight group of friends, and ever since the Katelyn thing a few days ago that's gone down to four, we hardly ever see the others any more," I explained.

"Maybe we can change that," he suggested, " Chad still talks to Zeke and Jason, that's automatic contact with Kelsi and Sharpay, Sharpay must still talk to Ryan, he's her brother, and Taylor still talks to Martha and Sasha, even though Sasha wasn't really one of the official gang, she was there every now again so we could include her,"

"Do you miss them?" I quizzed, "just every once in a while,"

"If something reminds me of them, yeah," he replied, "but I wouldn't go as far as saying I need them, I have everything I need,"

"Bailey?" I teased, laughing as he sighed.

"We've been having this conversation since your parents gave us the dog eight years ago," he pointed out, "If you insist that I need Bailey, I need Bailey, but really, I need you and the girls, nothing else is important,"

"Why are you being sweet?" I questioned mocking suspicion, "what are you up to?"

"Anyone would think you didn't trust me," he grinned, studying my face.

"Maybe I don't," I teased, noticing that he still held on to my hand, "maybe I haven't decided yet,"

"Of course you do," he insisted, "if you didn't you wouldn't be moving to LA with me,"

"How do you know that I'm not just going back to see my friends from college?" I questioned, smiling, "I haven't seen them in a while,"

"We've been teasing eachother like this for years," he smiled, "not much changes,"

"So, what are you up to?" I repeated, watching him carefully.

"I'm not up to anything," he denied, then gestured around the restaurant, "and this, you can't say I need a reason to spoil you, although if you want me to have one, it's that I love looking at you're pretty pretty face,"

"Suck up," I answered.

"Always," he replied, still not letting his eyes break contact with mine.

Taylor's POV 

"Tay?" I heard Chad ask from behind me, "Tay, are you ok?"

I nodded, continuing to stare off into space, I hadn't been expecting what he'd told me, and part of me wished that the problem had been what I thought.

"You're not," he decided, "you've been sitting in that exact spot, staring into space since I told you, that was hours ago,"

I finally turned to him, "are you sure?"

"I wish I wasn't," he commented, "but she was in an accident, and now she's in an irreversible coma, I guess I'm on my way to accepting it now, dad's still not taking it well,"

"But there's still a chance, right?" I questioned hopefully, "with coma's there's always a small chance of recovery."

"Only a two percent chance," he muttered, loud enough so I could hear him, "the odds don't look good,"

"Then why are you here?" I asked, looking him in the eye, "you should be in New York, you should be with your mom,"

"That's why the LA thing's so important," he told me, "she's being transferred there in the new year, that's why, over everything else, I want to move there, and it won't be so bad, not with Troy, Gabi and the girls there, we'll have friends there, we'll be ok, we don't need Albuquerque to be happy,"

I sighed, wondering why he was still trying to talk me into moving to LA, I'd already agreed to go earlier, he didn't need to carry on mentioning it.

"Is Sophie in bed?" I decided to ask, desperate to change the subject.

"Yeah," he stated, clearly confused at the sudden change of conversation, "Tyler's asleep too,"

I nodded, picking up a book from the floor and opening it.

"Tay?" he questioned again, "why are you reading a Mr. Men book?" **(Omg it's me at work experience)**

I put the book down, he knew perfectly well why I was avoiding conversation, even reading one of Sophie's books was better than thinking and talking about death of family members.

"I should tidy up," I decided, standing as I took the book over to Sophie's bookcase.

"It can wait," he tried, "until tomorrow at least,"

"You may like living in a pigsty," I answered, "but I don't, and it's not good for the kids, I need to tidy up,"

I felt him shoot me a concerned look as Tyler started crying from upstairs.

"I spoke too soon," he sighed as he began walking towards the stairs, "I'll get him,"

I nodded, not looking as we walked out of the room and up to our son, any reality would have been better than what I now had to deal with, I was better off before I knew what was going on, if I hadn't been so curious I could have been happy right now, if only I hadn't been so nosey.

* * *

**The title of this chapter refers to the three couples, although togetherness isn't actually mentioned, they are together, and it works.**

* * *

**A little fluff, a little drama, a kinda alright length, but I still think it's short, it's only five pages, but at least there isn't a mile of authors notes for you all to sift through, I hope it's not as boring as Can you forgive? Although it probably is. But hey, I'm worried about exams, and I wrote this yesterday after my English and before my math, you can't expect me to write genius chapters with that sort of pressure on me, I think that's the main reason I'm backing off Making right for now, I don't want to come back in a weeks time going, "what the hell was I thinking?" The other reason is, as you know, Kerry being an idiot and not deserving a chapter, it's her favourite of my stories.**

* * *

**Anyways, gotta revise**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!!**


	29. Parenting

**Regarding the rant: I'm not going to stop putting up the random rant just because someone doesn't like it (considering a certain review for another of my stories), the rant is specifically for my friend, whom prefers reading the rant to the story as she's random, she reviews the rant, I am not forcing you to read it, I make it bold so you know it is rant and not part of the story, giving you an option as to whether you read it or not, if you don't like it, don't read it, and don't waste your time complaining about it as I'm not going to stop because one person thinks I should.**

**Only one person had a problem, this person decided to tell me it shouldn't be there, they are my stories, if I want it there, it will be there.**

**I'm incredibly sorry to those of you who aren't complaining about the rant (which is most of you) as you either like it or couldn't care less about it, it just really annoys me that people read the rant if they don't want to, why bother, they are wasting their own time by reading and reviewing the rant, and are wasting my time by making me read pointless reviews about it, the rant has been moved to the end so you can get rid of the screen after you finish reading the chapter if you don't want to read the rant, IT'S OPTIONAL, don't read it then have a fit about how pointless it is, I know it's pointless, I did write it, this is going to appear in all of my stories, because it applies to all of them not just this one.**

**The above was approved of by my rant-reader and friend, we have both decided that the rants will continue at the end of chapters as usual, if I didn't continue them, there would probably be no future to any of my stories, because she would kill me in a science lesson, even though she is short (sorry, vertically challenged)**

* * *

**Ok, now you can read:**

* * *

**Isobel's POV**

"Mommy, why's she in the ground?" Tamsin quizzed my sister curiously.

"She's sleeping, sweetie," Gabriella answered, smiling down at her.

"Why's she sleeping in the ground?" Tamsin continued, "I don't sleep in the ground,"

"She's taking an extra-long nap," I told her, watching the chain around her neck, a present from mom, glimmer in the light.

"She must be very tired," Tamsin decided, "why's there a stone with writing on it, stones don't have writing on them,"

"You're very chatty today," I smiled, picking her up from the ground, "shush,"

"Shush is a silly word," she giggled, "you silly auntie Isobel,"

I nodded, noticing how naïve she was, giggling in a cemetery.

"God, Grandma, what happened to these flowers?" I heard Gabriella question, staring right at the grave, "you were always so good with appearances."

"Mommy talk to stone," Tamsin whispered loudly, nodding her head for emphasis.

"Mommy's talking to your Great Grandma," I explained, "even though she's not hear, she can still hear us,"

"Will she be mad if we wake her up?" Tamsin queried, watching me carefully, "I get mad when mommy wakes me up,"

"We can't wake her up, Tam," Gabriella told her calmly, "but she's ok, do you believe me?"

Tamsin nodded, "is she your grandma?"

"Yeah," I told her, "she was Nana's mommy,"

Tamsin nodded again, "we go now?"

I looked up at my sister, who, in turn, looked back at me, nodding; this would probably be the last time she visited our Grandmother's grave in a while, in two days time, she was moving, moving far away, joining Evan and Troy in LA, they'd decided that he should go and get Kirra settled, and she'd follow five days later with Tamsin, I was surprised that they'd seemed to switch kids, but I guess that was intentional, they did both need to spend time with their other child.

"Tell me again," I started as Gabriella took Tamsin out of my arms, clearly sensing that carrying the four-year-old was now making my arms ache, "why did Troy decide on a long car ride with Kirra, when you and Tam are flying,"

"Kirra loves long car trips," Gabriella elaborated again, "Tamsin hates them, it made sense,"

She let out a long sigh, making me smile weakly at her.

"You miss them," I stated, "don't you?"

She nodded, "I don't think I've been away from him this long since we met just over nine years ago, and Kirra, she's my baby, it's natural for me to miss her,"

"Is she always gonna be the baby?" I quizzed curiously, laughing at the look on her face and adding, "just asking,"

She smirked, "what do you think?"

"Me, think!" I exclaimed, mocking shock, "whatever would make you say such a thing?"

"Auntie Isobel no think," Tamsin agreed with me, "never ever ever ever ever,"

"Thanks, Tam," I replied, hearing my sister laugh at her daughter's comment, "that wasn't funny,"

"Yes it was," my sister insisted, "true as well,"

"I'd get you grounded for that if you were still eighteen," I pointed out, "you just need to grow down,"

"Grown down?" she laughed again, "that's the most insane thing I've ever heard,"

"Didn't Troy once tell you he didn't have an ego problem?" I stated, "You always said that was insane,"

"Ok, grow down is the second most insane thing I've ever heard," she relented, smiling happily.

"How quiet is your home right now?" I decided to quiz, silently waiting for a reply.

"Troy, Kirra and the dogs aren't there," she began, "but it's noisy, all I need is this little chatterbox, right Tam? I'm glad I'm not in that house alone though, it looks so empty now most of the furniture has gone,"

"Daddy say I go chatter chatter chatter," Tamsin agreed, continuing for effect while bringing in hand gestures., "chatter chatter chatter, mommy, what chatter?"

"Talking," Gabriella told her, "and daddy's right, you do talk a lot, and I love very much that you talk a lot, it stops me from feeling lonely,"

"Me talk all the time mommy," Tamsin squealed in excitement, "Kirra not talk much though,"

"Kirra will talk more when she's bigger," I assured her, "because she's very little she doesn't know a lot of words, not like you do,"

"Bel?" Gabriella questioned, making me turn to her, "promise me something,"

"What?" I quizzed, feeling that I already knew what she wanted.

"Promise me that you won't let this conflict with you and Carly ruin everything that mom and dad have built, I won't be there for you to run to any more, and a part of me regrets that, because I should," she told me, "but when I leave, promise me you'll look after them, promise me you won't worry about us too much,"

"Are you gonna get mom to make a similar promise when we get home?" I asked curiously, smirking as she gave me a stern look, "I promise,"

I opened the back door as we reached the car, glad that at least for the next few days, things would be near like old times, with my sister back at home, the only difference being Tamsin's presence, and the fact that I knew exactly when she was going to leave this time.

**Troy's POV**

"What's the plan for today Kirry?" I questioned the one year old.

"Mommy?" she stated, watching me for an answer.

"Not today, just me and you today, mommy and Tamsin come soon," I explained, she watched me for a while before turning back to the banana that was in front of her.

"Unca Cad?" she asked after a few minutes, "see Unca Cad?"

"You want to see Uncle Chad?" I quizzed, she normally cried when she saw him.

She shook her head fiercely, " Art Tayer,"

"You want to see Auntie Taylor?" I changed my question, watching her nod vigorously in reply, "and uncle Chad comes when Auntie Taylor comes doesn't he?"

She nodded again, still staring at me, "Daddy, naarna lellow,"

I smiled at her as she identified the color of the fruit, as far as I knew she'd never done that before.

"Just like mommy," I commented, watching her before taking out my cell and dialling Taylor's number,

A part of me was glad that she'd came up when Chad and I did, Kirra had been crying non-stop for the past two days, Taylor's presence had really helped calm her down, she'd seemed to accept now that mommy wasn't here, but clearly believed that if Taylor was here, mommy would follow.

**

* * *

I'm listening to Steps songs on my mp3, did you know Kerry claims that she doesn't like steps, and then goes and tells some random person that they are cool in the middle of school.

* * *

**

**I had a drama day today; we were assessed in out performance and all the rest of the time we were meant to be rehearsing, there was some shuttles left over from a badminton lesson someday this week, and the boys started playing badminton, using their shoes as rackets, and I thought I was mad, others were throwing plastic rods at eachother, a very constructive rehearsal, but that's what you get when you leave teenagers unsupervised in a hall while your assessing another group in another room at the other end of the building, as for me, I actually did rehearse, I kept going over my lines with Kerry, then started to annoy her by trying to get her to speak louder.**

* * *

**Anyways, end of rant, because I want more hot chocolate, and I'm gonna go make some.**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!!**


	30. Hard

**Ok, I have good news and bad news, first, the good news, I know exactly what I want to happen in the next chapter of Making it right, the bad news is, I don't know how to write it, so the next chapter isn't written and I'm falling behind, I haven't actually forgotten any of my stories, Getting Through's, well, getting nowhere, it's nearly finished and I want to finish it right, but I don't know how, so this one is technically the only one I can update right now if I don't want to screw any of them up.**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do now own High school musical in any way, it's kinda sad, I also do not own the song used in this chapter, which is also**** a sad fact.**

* * *

**This chapter is dedicated to the twins from work experience (T & K, told you they were based on real people), they gave me the inspiration for this chapter, because I saw them again in town, and one gave me evil looks, which was kinda funny.**

**This chapter is also dedicated to linklover26 for being a genius by calling me a genius.**

* * *

**There is a great sisterly moment in this chapter, I wanted to show how Isobel and Carly feel about everything, and it made sense to put it here, seeing as it would practically be too late after this chapter.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

"Gab?" I heard my sister ask from the door as I glanced over at my eldest daughter.

I turned to her, letting her know she had my full attention as she walked into the room.

"Remember what you said?" she asked, "earlier at the cemetery, about not being away from him this long,"

I nodded in reply, prompting her to continue.

"It's not true," she stated, "when he was away with work, you were apart for longer than five days,"

"Not without contact," I pointed out, noticing her confused look, "we decided it would be best for the girls if we didn't call, it'd be harder on them if they could hear both of our voices but only see one of us,"

"Gab," she said plainly, "it's five days, they wouldn't have had time to miss anyone,"

"Yes, they would," I argued, "they may be young, but they're not stupid, it'd be harder for them, I wouldn't be able to cope with Tamsin throwing a fit on me every time she hears her father's voice, and it'd be the same with Kirra if she heard me,"

I watched her glance over at the sleeping child and smile weakly, "I guess,"

"Are you ok?" I questioned, watching as she nodded, "Bel, it's obvious you're not, you wanna talk about it?"

"It's stupid," she claimed as she let out a long sigh and sat next to me, I motioned for her to continue, "we're hardly gonna see eachother anymore, all my life I've been used to you being here, and now your just going to be gone, in two days, you won't be here, and I'll have to deal with everything alone,"

"Izzie," I sighed as I pulled her into a hug, she knew I only called her Izzie when I was serious about something, "I'm only ever gonna be a phone call away, and you'll be at college in September, you're coming to live with us when you go because dad doesn't want you living on campus because of the stuff Evan said happens and I wanted a babysitter, remember?"

She nodded, "but I still have seven months until then, that's over half a year away, it's like I'm losing you for seven whole months,"

"You could never lose me, Izzie," I told her calmly, "I'm your sister, nothing can ever change that,"

"We lost Evan," she tried, "he went away to college and we hardly ever see him now, he hardly ever calls,"

"I'm not Evan," I reminded her, "I called every day when I was in college, remember? This will be no different, I'm just going for longer, if you ever need me, any time, night or day, you can always call,"

"You promise?" she questioned, giving me a glimpse of the vulnerable nine year old that was still hidden deep inside of her, the nine year old I'd scared beyond belief on occasion.

There was a sudden creak at the door and both of us looked up to see Carly standing there.

"Hey, cheerleader," I greeted, noticing how on edge she looked, "you ok?"

She nodded unconvincingly as she too came and sat on the bed.

The room fell into silence, none of us really knowing what to say to the others, Tamsin's light, even breathing was the only sound in the room.

"Do you have to go?" Carly broke the silence, looking up at me.

I nodded, "we need to get away, make a fresh start, away from Kevin and Kieran,"

"I wish you didn't have to," she admitted, "I don't want you to go,"

"Sometimes I don't want to," I explained, "when I think about leaving you guys here, it seems so scary, but if I don't go now, I never will, in a perfect world, you'd all be coming too, but your lives are here, mine is in LA now, it wouldn't be fair on you to have to leave your lives behind for me, you have your own friends, talents, your own everything, and it's all here,"

"We're gonna miss your birthday," Isobel pointed out, "I've never missed your birthday before,"

I smirked to myself knowingly, mom had already arranged plane tickets for them all to come to LA for my birthday, I wasn't meant to know, but they made the mistake of talking about it in front of Tamsin.

"We're gonna miss all birthdays now," Carly added, " this whole situation seriously sucks,"

I nodded in agreement, "I need you two to promise me something,"

"What?" the quizzed in unison, both watching my curiously.

"Promise me you'll look after eachother, and you'll look out for Charlie, he still needs us, you can't let Kevin get him back," I elaborated and watched as they nodded in silent agreement.

I watched as they both silently fell asleep on the bed next to Tamsin, smiling to myself at the sight, knowing that I'd probably come to treasure this moment for the rest of my life.

**Troy's POV**

The screaming woke me for the third time that night, making me sigh as I got up.

"She's gotta be possessed or something," I muttered to myself as I turned the light on in my younger daughter's room, knowing it wasn't true, but too tired to really think about it.

"Kirra," I comforted as I picked her up, "it's ok, daddy's here,"

"MOMMY!" she shouted, beginning to lash out, kicking her little legs wildly.

"Mommy's coming soon," I tried telling her, but it was just met by more screams of discontent.

I had no idea how to really deal with this, so I just did the first thing that came into my head, I sang.

_When your world is closin'  
Like it's comin' at ya  
When you're in the darkest corner  
I'm the one who'll come and catch ya _

When your life is wanderin'  
Down some nowhere highway  
Try a different point of view and  
_Do your best to see things my way _

Lookin' down., there is brother facin' brother  
Dyin' one by one  
But from the ground you can look up at the stars  
And see the words 'I love you' painted high above you

Gonna change the world  
Gonna make it right  
Gonna get down on my knees tonight  
Gonna change it all  
Gonna find a way_  
__Gonna start to change the world today_

_There is not a book that  
You cannot rewrite  
When you're in the darkest corner  
All you do is shine your light and _

When the other guy is  
Bigger than the sky  
Just before he's gonna hit ya  
You can always try and smile cos

All around, hear a million lonely people  
As the say "Goodbye"  
Yet there's the sound of a world that's full of laughter  
Because now I know I'm better at "Hello" and

Gonna change the world  
Gonna make it right  
Gonna get down on my knees tonight  
Gonna change it all  
Gonna find a way  
Gonna start to change the world today

When something is wrong, only we can turn it around  
So give me your hand, my brother and walk together  
Cos we've got a mountain to climb

Change the world today

Gonna change the world  
Gonna make it right  
Gonna get down on my knees tonight  
Gonna change it all  
Gonna find a way  
Gonna start to change the world today 

I smiled as I looked down to see she had fallen back to sleep, not recalling when the kicking and screaming had subsides as I put her back to bed, guessing that this probably wouldn't be the last time she woke up during the night, but happier with it now I had a rough idea of how to deal with it.

I checked my cell for new messages before I climbed back into bed, nothing, I knew we'd agreed to this no contact thing, but I didn't think either of us would stick to it, the truth was, I missed her, I missed Tamsin, and I couldn't wait until the next day and a half was over.

**Isobel's POV**

I woke up early the next morning, not surprised to find myself lying on my own bed, even though I'd been sharing my younger sister's room while our older sister and niece were staying.

My sisters and Tamsin were still sleeping as I silently crept out of the room and downstairs, into the room where my parents were in deep conversation.

"Hey, Bel," dad greeted, "we were thinking we'd do something special over the weekend, any ideas?"

I shook my head as I sat down, "sorry, dad, I just don't think I'll be in the mood to go out this weekend,"

"We know it's going to be hard," mom stated, "but you'll still see her, they're leaving Albuquerque not leaving our lives,"

"Mom, they're leaving the state," I pointed out, "we'll hardly ever see them,"

"Everything will be ok, angel," dad insisted, "I promise you, everything will be just fine,"

I watched as he stood up and left the room as mom placed a bowl of cereal in front of me, what he meant by that I had no idea, how could he promise everything would be ok when he couldn't possible know?

* * *

**I'm watching yours, mine and ours, I love that movie, don't you just love it, it's so awesome, "you painted the pig?" so hilarious, that line was ages ago though.**

* * *

**The song in the chapter is Gonna change the world by sclub7, I really love that song, no idea why, it's a random like of mine, most things I do are random though, I was gonna throw toast at my computer screen earlier because someone said to throw tomatoes at the end of one of their chapters but I had no tomatoes.**

* * *

**Ahhh, the film finished, I'm all sad now.**

* * *

**OMG, I bought Kerry's boat, I have two boats, no, not in real life, on an online game called puzzle pirates, it's an awesome game, I'd recommend it, I mean, come on, you get to be a pirate, and that's where the name Captain Chav (Tamsin's doll) came from, I call Kerry Captain Chav, and she calls me Senior Officer Cheese, because we have our own crew, and a C gang, she's Chav and I'm Cheese, our friend Emily is Chalk.**

* * *

**Anyway, as much as I'd love to continue with this rant, I'm starving hungry, and I'm tired, but I can't sleep cos I'm hyped up on cola and typing a mile a minute, so Im gonna go watch Yours, mine and ours again, because the disc is in the player, so all I have to do is press play.**

* * *

**OMG, one more thing, this chapter is the longest that I have put up for a while if you minus all the rant.**

* * *

**REVIEW!!!! (Please, it'll make me write quicker, and it may even give me ideas on how to start the next Making it right chapter, which would be a good thing, because I love this idea I have for it.**


	31. Reunited

**Disclaimer: I do not own High school musical, or the celebrities mentioned in this chapter, well basically I own nothing but the plot, Tamsin and Kirra from this chapter.**

* * *

**Ok, good news, I've figured out making it right, which is pretty obvious seeing as i just put the chapter up, Getting through is still getting nowhere though, but I can always figure that out some other time.**

* * *

**Hey, i'm on a roll, two stories in one night, too bad i can't work on the third, although i am still working on the Tribe oneshot, i keep re-writing that, it's harder than i thought it would be.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

Tamsin shrieked in excitement as she saw her father standing, waiting for us at the terminal, I put her on the floor, letting her run to him, watching as he picked her up in his free arm when he saw her, he was smiling as he clung on to her tightly.

Kirra was glancing around in his other arm as I continued walking towards them, watching her face light up as she saw me and reached out.

"I hope you didn't like that whole separation thing," Troy commented as I reached them and took Kirra off of him, "it's never happening again, I missed you too much,"

"We missed you, daddy," Tamsin told him, clearly deciding to chatter a mile a minute as we began to head towards the car, "and Bailey and Smokey and Kirra, and we went to see mommy's grandma, and she was sleeping in the ground, and mommy said we couldn't wake her up,"

I smiled as he continued the conversation with her while slipping his free had into mine, "Daddy and Kirra missed you and mommy too, Tammy,"

I noticed Kirra's arms were tighter around my neck than usual, deciding that it was only natural for her to be extra clingy to be after a five-day period of separation.

I was glad, at this moment that the only bag's we'd had were the carryon bags slung over my shoulder, Troy had brought everything else up days earlier, and some things I'd decided to leave with my parents and sisters for them to bring up when they came for my birthday.

"Mommy?" Tamsin's tone made me turn to her, "me see Sophie now?"

"Yeah," I agreed, "when we get home you can go and see Sophie,"

"We go back on plane?" Tamsin questioned, still watching me wide-eyed.

"Tammy," Troy answered for me, "we live here now, we go home in the car,"

"Auntie Isobel and Auntie Carly live here?" she continued to shoot questions.

"No, but Uncle Evan does," I explained, "and he was very excited about having his two favourite girls living so close,"

"He dropped by yesterday," Troy told me, "insisted that he had to make sure I hadn't murdered his niece, didn't tell me why I'd murder my own kid, even though she was being a Tasmanian devil this week, weren't you Kirry?"

"No," she refused, burying her head deeper into my shoulder, "my mommy,"

"She owns you," Troy laughed, "you're owned by a one year old,"

"You're just jealous cos she likes me better," I grinned, momentarily remembering times like this in high school.

"I meant what I said, you know," He pointed out, suddenly serious, "that separation and no contact thing didn't work for me, it's not happening again,"

"It didn't work for me either," I agreed, smiling at his statement, "I missed…"

"Come on," he encouraged, "admit it, you missed me,"

"Kirra," I finished triumphantly, "and I missed…. Taylor, and surprisingly I missed… Chad,"

He smirked at my teasing fully aware of what I was doing, "who else did you miss?"

"Tyler," I told him, "and Sophie,"

"Mommy, you missed daddy too," Tamsin insisted before turning to him, "she did miss you daddy, I heard Auntie Isobel say so, and mommy said it was hard, and it was when we went to see mommy's grandma who was sleeping in the ground, why was she sleeping in the ground?"

I watched him carefully, knowing he'd come up with a stupid answer to her question that she'd believe because in her mind daddy's word is law.

"Because she got tired, and was too lazy to go home," he announced, nodding to emphasise what he'd told her, " it's why mommy's lazy you see,"

I gasped in mock insult as I let go of his hand and turned to Kirra, "we don't like daddy anymore do we?"

She shook her head, sticking her tongue out at him as she did.

"You love me really," he smirked, taking hold of my hand again, "you know you do,"

"I don't," I told him, pulling my hand away and pointing to the front of some random magazine at an airport store we passed, "I love that guy,"

"Really?" Troy questioned, "What's his name?"

"Erm, "I began, watching his smirk grow as I hesitated, "Harry Perry,"

"Harry Perry," he pondered, "kinda reminds me of Halle Berry, does he know her?"

I playfully hit his shoulder, letting my arm drop to my side as I did, feeling him grab it again.

"Who dat?" Tamsin questioned him, watching him sternly, "Daddy, you love mommy, not silly person,"

"Mommy is silly," I decided, pouting under her glare to make her laugh.

"Daddy silly," Tamsin sighed, shaking her head, once again trying to act grown up, it was always so cute when she did that, "We go home now?"

"Yeah," I told her, "we're going home,"

"Of course, "Troy agreed, "we need to talk about your mother's crush on this Harry Perry guy,"

Tamsin tried her best to roll her eyes unsuccessfully, then decided to change the subject, "Uncle Chad hair still big?"

"Yep," he told her, "bigger than ever, waiting for a couple of kids to start ripping it from his head,"

"Yay," Tamsin cheered, turning to her sister, "we get to pull Uncle Chad hair out Kirra,"

Kirra looked over at her, clearly half asleep, yawning as she closed her eyes, resting her head on my shoulder.

"How about you pull Uncle Chad's hair out with Sophie?" I compromised, "I think Kirra's a little sleepy,"

Tamsin nodded, following Kirra's lead and resting her head on her father's shoulder.

"I think they're both a little sleepy," he whispered to me just as we reached the car, "I could think of a million other things we could do while they sleep, half of them things little kids shouldn't see,"

"You have a dirty mind, Troy Bolton," I exclaimed quietly as I separated our hands to let him unlock the car, "And with the girls right here as well, you are unbelievable,"

"Who says I was thinking about that?" he questioned, "maybe it's you with the dirty mind,"

I sighed, shaking my head as Tamsin had done earlier, placing Kirra in her car seat and strapping her in as Troy did the same with Tamsin, it definitely was great to be back.

* * *

**Once again, as I said in making it right, I know it's short; you don't have to tell me, but it's more a filler than anything, and it's sweet, it's just a fluffy filler.**

**Hmmm, Fluffy Filler, that sounds cool, Fluffy Filler, Fluffy Filler, Fluffy Filler, that's gonna be my new saying, unless i can come up with something better anyway.**

* * *

**I'd rant more, but for once in my life i'm actually at a loss for things to say, except, on puzzle pirates there was that huge boat with 159 skeleton men that attacked just seven of us, we lost of course, so amazingly outnumbered we didn't stand a chance.**

* * *

**As i said in MIR i'm watching charmed, so i'm going to go do that now, i need to change the DVD, it's season one, but i watched the four episodes on this one already, so i need to change it, so i'm off, happy reading and writing.**

**REVIEW!!!**


	32. Drama

**I have come to the conclusion, that Isobel is a legend, and she may, again, decide to jump on a plane without her parents permission, but only because she's a legendary genius rebel.**

* * *

**I would have updated sooner, but I'm lazy, and I was out of soft mints.**

* * *

**Ok, on with the chapter.**

* * *

**Isobel's POV**

"Michael Reece Warner do not throw me in that pool!" I half-screamed, still looking at my boyfriend's smirking face.

"Using the full name are we now Izzie?" He smirked, "Ouch,"

"I swear, if you throw me in that pool, I'll…" I paused to think, knowing he'd have something to say about it.

"You'll what?" he grinned, "Get wet?"

"I won't kiss you for a month," I smiled triumphantly as he quickly set my feet on the ground, "Good boy,"

"Cruelty Izzie, I swear, Cruelty," he gasped, "What time is it?" **(Second time I've done that for two chapters, the other one's in getting through)**

"Lets just say I should be home already and my dad's going to murder you," I answered, grinning in the half-light as I watched his eyes widen, "I'm kidding, it's only like, seven thirty,"

"The why's it dark?" he quizzed, watching me curiously as I began to walk away from him.

He followed close behind me as I answered, "Are you being purposely stupid, it's winter, moron, it gets dark earlier in the winter,"

"But," he began, "why?"

"I don't know, do I," I pointed out, "I'm not exactly my sister am I?"

"You miss her," he decided, "don't you?"

"She's been around my whole life," I explained, "and now she's gone, and I have no idea when I'm going to see her again, talking on the phone and emailing isn't the same as seeing her everyday,"

"At least you get some contact," Michael shrugged, "I never see my brother, only seen him once since he had that huge fight with my parents and moved out,"

"You never told me what that was about, "I stated, "So I don't really know what to think of that,"

"He got engaged," Michael, elaborated, "his choice wasn't the sort my parents wanted for him, she wasn't anything like what they would have wanted, they told him he was ruining his life, told him that getting married would be a mistake, so he left, we got invited to the wedding, I managed to sneak off and go but my parents wouldn't, he said it didn't matter, I was there and that was enough for him, who needed family and all, but I could tell it bothered him that they weren't there, and when they'd found out through my sister in laws parents that I did, god I'd never heard them shout that much,"

I went quiet, looking down at the ground, "that's why you won't tell them about my dad, isn't it?"

"What good would it do, Izzie?" he questioned, wrapping his arm around my shoulders, "They followed your dad's case in the papers over the whole thing with your sister, the things they said during that trial, they hate him, they don't even know your family and they hate him, they can't know that you're biologically his kid, I can't have them hating you,"

I nodded, I'd already known most of his reasons for not telling them, besides, Kevin wasn't my dad anymore, Andrew was, that desire to kill couldn't be in the blood, if it was, Charlie and I were in a lot of trouble.

**Gabriella's POV**

"TAMSIN!" I called up the stairs, watching as the four year old appeared and sat down on the steps, "come on sweetie, come downstairs for mommy,"

"NO," she refused, eyeing me with contempt.

"Tamsin, mommy's sorry for shouting, but you can't hit Kirra like that, you could hurt her," I tried explaining the situation calmly, surprised that anger wasn't yet building up, "how about you come downstairs and get your shoes on?"

She continued watching me for a few seconds before standing up and warily climbing down the steps, edging past me as she reached the bottom and made her way over to the place where she had left her shoes.

I sighed, wandering back into the living room to see Kirra grinning up at me, her shoes half way across the room.

"You have got to stop doing that," I smiled, picking up her shoes and once again putting them on her, "You know, I'm gonna find out who taught you to take your shoes off, and then I'm going to take these very shoes and use them as weapons against the perpetrator,"

Kirra giggled, once again reaching for her feet as I quickly picked her up to avoid having to put her shoes on her again.

"Tamsin?" I asked when I got out into the hall, "you ready?"

She glanced up at me before staring back at the front door, "I see Sophie?"

"Yes, you're going to see Sophie and Tyler while Mommy and Daddy go out with Auntie Chad and Uncle Taylor," I repeated, "Uncle Chad's daddy has said he wants to spend some time with the four of you, because Uncle Chad's mommy is sick and his daddy needs to be cheered up,"

"Why's she sick?" Tamsin quizzed, clearly expecting me to know.

"She got into an accident," I told her, "the doctors are trying to make her better but they're not doing so well,"

"We should take her fruit," Tamsin suggested, "sick people like fruit,"

"Who likes fruit?" I heard Troy question as he finally came downstairs, watching Tamsin.

"Sick People," Tamsin insisted.

He looked at me questioningly as I shook my head and smirked, "And you say I take a long time to get ready, nice of you to join us,"

He rolled his eyes, scooping Tamsin off of the floor, "You sure Taylor said that Charlie's ok to have the kids, we can always cancel if he's not up to it,"

"Taylor said he wanted to do it," I assured, "he said he needs the distraction and being surrounded by happy kids may take his mind off things for a while, and you can't miss this introductory dinner, it's your first chance to meet all of your teamates, why I have to be there is the only thing that I'm still wondering. "

"You have to be there," he stated as he opened the front door, "because you make me look good, see, without you I'm just a guy, with you I'm a guy that has an extremely hot wife,"

I felt myself blush at his comment as I walked out ahead of him, muttering, "you don't need me to look hot, suck up," under my breath, loud enough for him to hear.

"Always and forever a suck up," he replied as he always did as I heard the front door close behind me.

"DADDY," Kirra shouted as she began to squirm on my hip as she turned to me, "DADDY SING,"

"Did he now?" I grinned looking back at him to see the look of surprise on his face, "you've been singing to her, have you?"

I watched as he used his free arm to rub the back of his neck, a telltale sign that he was either nervous or embarrassed, "Well, um, it was the only way I could think of to calm her down when you weren't here,"

"I think it's just because you love singing," I smirked, watching his reaction carefully, "one of your talents,"

**Carly's POV**

Boredom overcame me as we once again repeated another old routine; this harsh practice schedule was getting a bit too much now, but they were needed if we wanted to make nationals this year.

"What's up Carls?" I heard Chelsea question from behind me, "why'd you stop?"

"Thinking," I answered, looking back at the squad, "we've got to do bigger and better things this year, we have to be better than we were last year, better than any squad has ever been before,"

"We are Carly," Ella smiled, "and it's all down to you, making as work harder was an awesome idea,"

"It really was," I heard Becca agree, "it may be almost eight at night, but at least we can bet that we're the most practice team, and practice makes perfect,"

I sighed, I hadn't told any of the squad, least of all my three friends, that the only reason practice had become so intense was because I missed my sister, I needed something to fill my time and stop me thinking about her and my nieces now that they lived in a different state, lived, for all I know, a different time zone **(Carly's not overly smart, that's Isobel, remember, even though she hides it)**

I turned to notice that the rest of the squad had all started their own conversations now, and truthfully I was sick of practice for tonight, we'd been practicing for two hours straight, and it was tiring.

"Ok, everyone, you can go," I announced, dismissing them quickly, watching Stacy and Tiffany begin to sort the equipment.

I quickly picked up my bag and stalked off, not in the mood to be roped into helping, I wanted to get home and email my sister, I had been every day since she left, she hadn't answered much, I didn't expect her to, she had to sort out her work transfer while keeping an eye on Tamsin and Kirra and sorting out their new house, life couldn't exactly be easy for her right now.

* * *

**It's shorttttttt, and I can't rant today, it's almost 3AM and I'm tired, and I just watched Charlie and the Chocolate factory.**

* * *

**On PP, I turned red, in other words, I changed my pirate's outfit, it was blue, now it's red.**

* * *

**Waaaaaa, I finished all my soft mints, now I'm gonna cry (and you'll have to wait longer for the next chapter, i need softmints, or maybe TicTacs, i think i have some of those left), and watch the last episode in Gilmore Girls Season six, then cry some more because I hate that ending, just because it's never made me cry doesn't mean I can't make it, I'm an actress, I can cry on cue, it's easy.**

* * *

**Ok, I'm really gonna stop now, because my finger hurts, and I figured that if it doesn't stop I could bite it off, but then it would hurt more so that's not a great idea, so now I figured I should stop typing.**

* * *

**Typing, that reminds me of something, did you know when I was halfway through writing this chapter (at the line **at his comment as I walked**), my keyboards batteries died, and I spent about ten minutes trying to figure out what happened before I figured out that it was the batteries, and then I had to change the batteries, so I wasted I good fifteen minutes of writing time, DARN KEYBOARD, infact, I should have just used the onscreen keyboard, would have saved time.**

* * *

**Ok, I'm really going to stop now, my finger is killing me, and i just realised i said i wasn't going to rant today and technically i just did.**

* * *

**REVIEW!! (as always, five for next chapter)**


	33. Trained

**OMG, LEMONS!!!!!**

* * *

**Sorry, that was a bit random.**

* * *

**Maybe I should just let you read, yeah that's a good idea, read.**

* * *

**This chapter is dedicated to a Unicorn, cos Unicorns are cool as, so if you know any Unicorns, tell them the chapter is for them.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

"This place is awesome," Chad commented as we entered the hall, "but where's the food?"

"That really is all you think about, isn't it?" Taylor quizzed, sighing as I laughed.

"Nope," he denied, "I think about you, in…"

"Don't need to hear anymore," I rushed, stopping him from finishing the sentence.

Troy smirked as he took in my facial expression and whispered to me, "it's not like we didn't know, and it'd not like we don't do the same thing,"

"Dude, could you get any closer to her?" Chad quizzed, making us turn to see both him and Taylor watching us, alerting us to how close we actually were.

"Yes," Troy decided, causing me to hit him, "but not in public,"

Chad gave him a knowing look as Taylor rolled her eyes.

We walked over to our allocated table, surprised that nobody stopped us on the way.

"There's food on the table!" Chad announced when we reached it, leaving only two seats remaining, "I love this team already!"

"That's not food," I decided to tease, "it's a hologram, designed to make you think there's food there so you try and eat it and make a fool of yourself,"

He studied it for a few minutes before looking up at me, "Thanks for the heads up, I'd never have guessed,"

I glanced at Taylor, who was trying her best not to laugh at how gullible he had just been. I looked to my side at my husband, who also seemed to be smothering laughter.

"Anyway," Troy spoke up, "we figured you two would know nothing about the Lakers, let alone who plays for them,"

"That's where you're wrong," Taylor interrupted triumphantly, "we know you two play for them,"

"Besides that," Troy continued, "so I figured I'd tell you, we were both going to but seeing as Chad's too busy staring at hologram food, it's down to me,"

"What is it?" I questioned, "It's not bad is it?"

"Depends how you see it," he explained, smirking at my questioning looks before elaborating, "Zeke plays for the Lakers, has done for years, why did you think the anniversary party was only a maybe? They were here, they flew in hours before it started,"

"Zeke's here?" Taylor repeated, looking for clarification.

Troy nodded, "that's kinda what I just said,"

"Does that mean that…?" Taylor continued, pausing as Chad started waving his hand over the food, "Sharpay's here too?"

Troy nodded as Chad spoke up, "Damn hologram looks so real,"

"You must be so proud," I laughed, watching Taylor's face change to one of embarrassment.

She turned to me, adapting a stern look, "I am incredibly proud, thank you very much,"

I smirked, watching as Chad continued to wave his hand over the food.

"Is it me, or is Chad greeting the food?" I heard a voice quiz from behind me, "because that's not normal,"

"He says hi to all his meals," Troy answered as we both turned around, "wants them to like him before he eats them,"

Sharpay frowned, raising her eyebrows, "The truth?"

"Gabi decided it'd be fun to tell him the food was a hologram," Taylor elaborated, "and he believed it,"

"He always did believe the weirdest things," Zeke decided from just behind Sharpay, "but seriously, he believes the food is a hologram, that's gotta be the strangest thing he's ever believed,"

Everything went silent for a while, before Sharpay suddenly pulled Taylor and I up and made an announcement, "I'm stealing your wives,"

She began pulling us away as Troy called, "I want her back in twenty minutes, and if a hair on her head is out of place I'm holding you responsible,"

"Anyone would think I was Tamsin," I muttered to Taylor and Sharpay.

"He's always been like that though," Taylor, pointed out, "not so extreme though, but hey, you're lucky, Chad hasn't even noticed that I've gone,"

"You know why he's suddenly going all possessive, right?" Sharpay asked, sighing when she saw my confused face, "don't you get it? Your in a room full of guys, he doesn't want them near you, by shouting that he pretty much let the whole room know that you're his, so to speak,"

"Didn't you get the memo?" Taylor smirked, "her one year old daughter owns her, Kirra's favourite saying is, and I quote, 'my mommy',"

"That is so cute," Sharpay, grinned, "I have to take them shopping some time,"

"You want to take my two daughters, who haven't even started school yet, shopping?" I questioned, "don't you think they're a little too young?"

"You gotta start em young," Sharpay decided, "that way by the time they're eight, they'll know to always go to the bank of dad for money, you'll never have to give them your own money again,"

"Can you take Sophie too?" Taylor questioned, "I'm all for her spending Chad's money,"

"Yeah, we should make a day of it, just us and our daughters," Sharpay agreed, "It'll be great,"

"You have a daughter?" I asked her in shock, watching her smile as I asked.

"Jaelin," She smiled, "and a son, Justin, they're two,"

"Why don't you bring him too?" Taylor questioned, "the kids will all know eachother then, well, with the exception of Kirra who socialises with no one but her mother,"

"Justin hates shopping," Sharpay explained as I mocked a gasp, "so it can be a real girls day out, I'm sure Zeke can watch Justin for a few hours,"

"You really have him trained, don't you?" Taylor pointed out, "I'd love Chad to be like that, how did you two train them guys?"

I laughed at her question, realising that I didn't actually know myself, all I knew was that Troy did whatever the girls or me asked.

* * *

**Still ssssssshhhhhhhooooooooorrrrrrrrttttttttt, but I'm hungry, and I have no soft mints, and I don't want to go to school tomorrow, and I need to find my MP3 before tomorrow, God knows where I put it after school.**

* * *

**Last night, was hilarious, I watched Thunderbirds, and I'd never seen it before, and I couldn't stop laughing, it was so random, it was on my portable DVD player, and they were watching TV, so I was watching a TV on TV, how cool is that, and I don't know why but I found it funny every time someone said The Bank of London, and since when was there a monorail in the Thames?**

**I only decided to watch it because I was listening to Busted songs and Thunderbirds are go came on and I remembered my dad got me it on DVD ages ago and realised I'd never watched it.**

* * *

**Anyways, I'm going to go.**

* * *

**I HAVE TO WATCH THUNDERBIRDS AGAIN!!!!!**

* * *

**REVIEW!! (5 for next chapter)**

* * *

**P.S - EVERYONE GO AND WATCH THUNDERBIRDS, IT'S SERIOUSLY GREAT, i don't own it though :(**

**P.S.S - I LOVE UNICORNS**


	34. Vanity

**OH MY GOD, LOOK WHO'S BACK!!!**

**Ok ok, I've watched too much Gilmore Girls, I give you permission to confiscate my DVD's (I'll just watch Thunderbirds instead) **

* * *

**It's late up, i know, because I just watched Wild At Heart (I missed it on Sunday, watched it on catch up), and it had a major cliffy ending, and it said to be continued, so we have to wait until next week, even though we know Sarah dies because the actress is leaving, but that doesn't mean they should make us wait.**

* * *

**Ok, I would ramble more, but I want to write the next chapter, so I kinda need to get this up quick.**

* * *

**Taylor's POV**

"Hey guys," I greeted, sitting back down next to Chad, whom was still staring intently at the food, I smirked, "she wasn't serious, Chad, the food isn't a hologram,"

"Then why would she say it?" he questioned, "she's not the sorta girl that lies, Tay,"

"Solely for our amusement," I grinned, "it was funny,"

"That's cruel," he decided, changing his tone almost immediately, "can I eat now?"

"Yes, Chad," I relented, "you can eat now,"

He smiled as he started wolfing down the appetizers that were resting on plates on the table.

"He's been staring at those plates since you left," Troy spoke up, "got kinda freaky after a while, like he was trying to do some voodoo mind game on it, anyway, just wondering, where'd you leave that wife of mine?"

"Sharpay's convincing her to spend your money," I explained, "there was also talk of your daughters spending your money,"

"She's being a bad influence then," he pointed out, "what's new?"

"It's working," I stated, laughing as he automatically jumped up.

"Where has that over dramatic blonde taken my wife?" he demanded, "I swear to god I'll save her from that woman's evil clutches if it's the last thing I do, I have a duty to protect her,"

"Troy," I grinned, watching as he turned to me, "you forgot to say Thunderbirds are go," **(sorry, I had to)**

He shook his head as I pointed in the direction I had come from, watching as he began heading that way before turning my attention to my own husband, whom was already half way through his second plate.

**Gabriella's POV**

"So, you're new to our little group, huh?" one of the women whom Sharpay had introduced me to ranted, "must be strange, right, new state and all,"

I nodded, not really sure what to say to this woman whom I'd already forgotten the name of.

I cursed myself for not getting out of it earlier when Taylor had, I may have thought that Sharpay was vain, but these women take it to a whole new level.

"You like it here so far?" the same woman continued, "it's easy to adapt to life in LA, it's awesome here, and just think of the money,"

I sighed, money was the second most important thing to them, they'd clearly lived with unlimited money all their lives, they'd be in for quite a shock if their unlimited cash dried up.

"You always this quiet?" she continued rambling, "It's hard to believe one of our kind is quiet, we always have something to talk about, mostly the latest things our husbands got us, what's the last thing yours got you?"

"Um..." I started, "this necklace, it was an anniversary present,"

"Nice, when's your anniversary?" she continued asking questions that had nothing at all to do with her, "Does he remember it?"

"New years eve," I elaborated, noticing that I already seemed to be conforming **(yes I take psychology)** to the groups behaviours, "he never forgets,"

"Why New Years Eve?" she suddenly questioned, confusion etched on her face, "don't you like, have to spend that with other people,"

"We met on New Years Eve, nine years ago," I explained, still wondering why I was bothering to tell her any of this, "so we decided to get married on New Years Eve, having our kids there on our anniversary just makes it all the more special,"

"Oh, my god," the woman exclaimed, "you have kids, it's like, you and Shar are the only ones, well except for Abby, but she doesn't count, she's never been one of the group, too strange for us, you know?"

I nodded, unsure what to say as she continued to speak, "it's not as if Abby's kids even look good, they're like, so unfashionable, and when I offered to sort that, she complained, talk about ungrateful."

I jumped as a pair of hands covered my eyes, and a distinctly male voice spoke, "guess who?"

"Gee, I dunno," I teased, "Dad?"

"Keep trying," he insisted, "you'll get there,"

I smiled, thinking back to all the times we had played this teasing game in high school.

"Santa Clause?" I exclaimed questioningly, hearing him let out small chuckle.

"Close," he decided, "think a little closer to home,"

"Evan!" I exclaimed, "shouldn't you be at college?"

I smiled as my vision returned, telling me that the hands had been moved.

"You're no fun," I complained, looking up to notice that most of the group were watching us, "I would've guessed you eventually,"

"Yeah, " he agreed, "when you'd ran out of other options, you were taking too long, why are we being watched?"

I stood up, turning around to face him, "no idea, maybe we're just interesting,"

"Your just acting all cute," Sharpay commented, letting us know that they could all hear us, "this lot don't get cute in their marriages anymore,"

"I do," the woman that had previously been questioning me on my life, "just not with my husband, I figured that if I'm in the marriage but I'm acting all cute with someone else, that's still technically a part of the marriage,"

"Yeah, not so much," Sharpay laughed, "you're a riot Jen,"

"Just because you don't agree," Jen shot back, "doesn't mean it's not cute,"

"Honey, you'll never hit their cute, they take cute to a whole new level," Sharpay snapped in reply, "Just face it, you and Mike aren't gonna be the hottest laker couple for much longer,"

"I always knew you loved me Shar," Troy smirked, trying to stop this fight before it really started, "ever since sixth grade,"

"No one loves you more than you love you, Troy," Sharpay stated, mocking sweetness, "you've been in love with yourself since third grade,"

"But all that changed," he insisted, "during junior year at high school, the love I had for myself was stolen, and she's still refusing to give it back,"

"Does he ever stop?" Sharpay quizzed, looking pointedly at me, "its kind of annoying me,"

"Really," I smiled, "never really annoys me,"

"You know what annoys me, Shar," Troy began, "people that steal my wife, promise only to keep her for twenty minutes and never bring her back, then try convincing her to spend my money, I like to spend my money, just because I spend it on her and the girls instead of myself doesn't mean that I don't like to spend it, you're a bad influence, Evans."

"I do my best," she smirked, turning back to the group, whom had now seemed to get bored and continued with their own conversations, all except Jen who was staring at us intently.

"So you guys were like, dating in high school?" she spoke, more as a question than a statement, she paused, waiting for us to nod before she continued, "so how do you know that this whole marriage thing you got going on will last forever?"

"It's a feeling," Troy told her harshly, "and it's deep, nothing like you would have ever felt before going by what I've just heard,"

He quickly took my hand and led me away from the group, keeping me as close as possible.

I sighed, he always got overly defensive when it came to our marriage, probably because of his father's opinions, the opinions that had nearly broken us during the summer after senior year, just before we left for college.

**Carly's POV**

"YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS!" I shouted as loud as I could, taking a step away from my father, "I don't want to see her, you can't make me,"

"Actually Carly, I can," he corrected, "as long as you're still in my care it is up to me who you do and do not see, your mother has expressed an interest in seeing you, I'm not going to deny her that right."

"She is not my mom, Maria is my mom," I insisted, "she was never any good to me, Evan said she was bad news, I don't want to see her, I don't want to know her and I don't care what she wants."

"Bel?" I heard him regard my stepsister, "what do you think?"

I sighed; Isobel was never going to agree with me, not after everything that had happened.

"Personally," I heard her start, "I think Alyssa's not that bad, not after she helped me and Gabi during the whole, running away incident all those years ago, but I also think it should be Carly's decision, and it really sucks that your trying to force her to do something she clearly doesn't want to do."

I watched my dad's expression change, clearly thinking about what she'd said.

He was silent for a while, I just stood, waiting for him to speak, when finally he did, "we'll talk about this tomorrow, just, go to bed, I'll discuss it with your brother, see what he thinks,"

I nodded, running upstairs quickly, wanting to avoid being called back, he changed his mind quickly, and often.

* * *

**No rant today, it's too late, there would have been if I'd put it up earlier, but I didn't, so there's not, but hey, the chapter is a little longer than usual, hopefully that makes up for the lack of rant.**

* * *

**Review!!!! (Five for next chapter as always)**


	35. Contact

**Wow, I have hot cocoa, how weird would it be if someone reading this has hot cocoa?**

* * *

**School today was random.**

**Me: Alanaha, did you break the law with David.**

**Alanaha: What law?**

**Me: How old are you?**

**Alanaha: fifteen**

**Me: did you break the law with David?**

**All the way through that random conversation, me, Kerry and Marie were laughing, but Alanaha still hasn't got it, as far as I know anyway.**

* * *

**Omg I almost forgot about this:**

**Me: Work in the last lesson before Christmas, out of order.  
Kerry: Sir's a twat.  
Me: Let's go on strike.  
Kerry: But we never do the work anyway  
Me: So not the point**

* * *

**Me, Kerry, Marie and Fiona are a folding machine, we had to fold some random careers fair guide, and we were working so fast, we decided we were a machine.**

* * *

**Ok, so I was reading this, and I decided I wanted more Carly IM's in it, it's random.**

* * *

**Ok, that's all the rant for today.**

* * *

**Isobel's POV**

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" I questioned for what seemed like the hundredth time since Michael had picked me up, "they don't see me that much, what if they can tell I'm related to him through my personality,"

"Izziebel, you're being ridiculous," Michael smirked, watching my mock frown.

"Nobody's called me Izziebel since my sister when I was ten," I stated, "and she only called me it out of a desire to piss me off,"

"I'll remember that," he grinned, "always good to have ways to annoy you,"

"You're mean," I complained, pulling on his arm to demonstrate that I knew a lot about what annoyed him too.

"Come on," he laughed, swinging open the front door of his home, "please don't act so hyper around my parents, they'll think you drank coffee,"

"I didn't." I smiled truthfully, "just three, two litre bottles of cola,"

"You're running on practically six litres of sugar, Bella," he replied, "you're a revolutionary, you know that?"

"I also had some awesome sweets that my sister sent from California," I rambled, "I would have saved you some, but they were too good to waste on anyone else, I'll call Evan, get him to send me some, then you can have more, I mean, of course once I'm 21 I'll get some of my grandparents money so I'll be able to buy it myself, but until then, I have to rely on my stepbrother and my sister to…"

"Stepbrother?" I heard an older voice question, forcing me to look away from Michael's distracting features to the now disapproving ones of his mother, "you're parents aren't still together?"

"No," I admitted, "my dad was a bad person, he's not worth my time, not after what he did, my step dad, he's awesome, better than anything my dad could ever be,"

I gulped as she watched me for a few more seconds before disappearing into the kitchen without another word, this was going to me a long dinner.

**Carly's POV**

I sighed, throwing my homework down on my bed, it wasn't just boring, it was impossible; maybe it would be easier if I actually listened in class, but that would totally ruin my rep.

I walked back over to my desk, opening my laptop; homework so isn't a priority right now.

**EvAnRoKs: **Go do your homework.

**Carlyluvsu**: Have you done yours?

**EvAnRoKs:** Uh…

**Carlyluvsu:** Exactly Seeya bro

I exited the window and started scrolling down my contact list, checking who was actually online.

**Ellagirl:** What's up with Becca?

**Carlyluvsu:** she saw your face?

**Ellagirl:** I'm serious, Carls.

**Carlyluvsu:** okies, hey, do you have anyone on your contact's that has the display name Carlys-a-rebel?

**Ellagirl:** Nope, but seriously Carls, figure Becca out!

**Carlyluvsu:** I'll talk to her.

**Ellagirl:** Thanks, gotta go now, mom's dad's freaking about my homework, times like this that makes me miss my cool mom.

**Ellagirl has signed out.**

I clicked on the screen name that had first caught my attention a few seconds ago, seeing the words, "from this moment on," (those of you that read can you forgive will know why) captioned on the display picture, a picture of my sister and brother in law.

**Carlyluvsu:** YOU!

**Carlys-a-rebel:** ME!

**Carlyluvsu:** I'm not a rebel.

**Carlys-a-rebel:** The disp name says different.

**Carlyluvsu:** What time is it there?

**Carlys-a-rebel:** Past your bedtime.

**Carlyluvsu:** Past yours too then?

**Carlys-a-rebel:** Yes, I have to work tomorrow.

**Carlyluvsu:** You mean you're actually gonna go? I'm shocked.

**Carlys-a-rebel:** Aren't you hilarious.

**Carlyluvsu:** Yep! Anyways, if you have to sleep, why are you still up?

**Carlys-a-rebel:** Troy's not home yet 

**Carlyluvsu:** My heart bleeds. Do you have an actual reason or is it just your stupid pining?

**Carlys-a-rebel:** That is a reason!

**Carlyluvsu:** Not so much, get a life.

**Carlys-a-rebel:** I already got one, sadly, your in it, now, how's my favorite sister.

**Carlyluvsu:** I'm awesome, Bel's a slut.

**Carlys-a-rebel:** Did you just say Bel's awesome and you're a slut?

**Carlyluvsu:** Nooo, you're a slut.

**Carlys-a-rebel:** Totally, don't tell Troy though.

**Carlyluvsu:** You're not meant to agree with me.

**Carlys-a-rebel:** Of course I do Carly; you're like a God to me.

**Carlyluvsu:** You mean Goddess.

**Carlys-a-rebel:** No I mean God.

**Carlyluvsu: **OMG, I am so not talking to you anymore, until next week, when mom will force me to talk to you, can't you just cancel your birthday?

**Carlys-a-rebel: **I will if you will.

**Carlyluvsu: **Juvenile, I'm not talking to you; you are not worth my time.

**Carlys-a-rebel: **Need to talk to Becca again?

**Carlyluvsu: **When don't I, she's always screwed up nowadays.

**Carlys-a-rebel: **Seeya rebel, go deal with Becca, I'll txt the rest of my insults.

**Gabriella's POV**

I smiled as I signed out, it had been a while since Carly and I had been on at the same time, Isobel called every night, unless she knew I wasn't going to be home, but Carly had always been more independent than Isobel, she didn't need me as much, so there wasn't as much contact.

I switched the computer off and headed upstairs to bed, Carly didn't need to know that the real reason I had been on was because I had been hoping to talk to her, just to see how she was.

Quickly looking into Tamsin and Kirra's rooms, I watched their even breaths of they slept, undisturbed. Peaceful, knowing that I was a long way from it, moving to LA and away from my family had made me more alert, and I liked to know where all three of them were.

* * *

**Still short, because I still have longchapterphobia, plus, my socks are blue.**

* * *

**Ok, maybe that had nothing to do with the chapter being short, but hey, short is better than nothing at all, right? Besides, it's the quality that matters, not how much of it there is, although, this chapter is bad, because I said so, and what I say goes.**

* * *

**REVIEW (five for next chapter) **


	36. Missing

**WARNING: PLOT TWIST ALERT**

**Summary changed to go with it.**

**This is kinda intense, but this plot is kinda impossible to write without intensity.**

**Don't kill me, then you'll never know what happens.**

* * *

**No one's POV (to keep it semi-mysterious)**

Gabriella yawned as she opened her eyes, glancing over at the clock as she realised her husband still wasn't home. Two thirty, she was never awake this early in the morning, but she knew it was her protective instincts keeping her awake.

She climbed out of bed, slowly making her way out of the room, smiling at the sleeping forms of her daughters through their doors, she jumped as she heard a noise downstairs, watched Tamsin stir and sit up.

"Mommy?" the four year old asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Stay there sweetie," Gabriella whispered in assurance, hearing footsteps on the stairs, footsteps she could tell didn't belong to her husband, "whatever happens, stay in bed, if I don't get the chance, tell daddy there was a bad man,"

She automatically closed Tamsin's bedroom door, then repeating the action with Kirra's, amazed herself at how calm she was managing to stay.

"What do we have here?" smarmed a familiar voice from behind her, "nice to see you again, time for a reminder I think, remember the words Gabi, if I can't have you, no one can,"

She turned, facing the top of the stairs.

"Can't you just…" she tried to speak, forced into silence as he interrupted.

"Your husband always says you're his world, so lets see how much you're really worth to him," the voice snarled as she saw him make his way towards her, she began to back away, stopping as he spoke again, "it's you or one of your precious little girls, your choice,"

"Stay away from my children," she demanded, "don't ever go near them,"

"We should be going," he spoke nonchalantly, reaching me in a few strides as he grabbed hold of her wrist, "you know, Troy needs to use his brain more, anything could happen to a vulnerable woman like yourself when their husband isn't home, let alone the children,"

He pulled tightly on her wrist, painfully crushing it as he forcefully pulled her down the stairs and out of the front door, out into the cold, harsh night.

**Troy's POV**

"DADDY!" Tamsin screamed as I walked through the front door.

I jumped back in shock, it had just gone three, and there was no way she should be up.

"Tammy, why are you still up?" I questioned as I scooped her up in my arms.

"Mommy said I had to stay up," she told me in a matter of fact tone, "only till you got home, I look after Kirra,"

"Sweetie," I began, "I know you like looking after Kirra, but mommy's here, and she looks after you and Kirra,"

"Mommy not here," Tamsin nodded, "Mommy go out,"

"Is Auntie Taylor here then?" I questioned, confused about my daughters words.

"She shook her head, "me and Kirra,"

"You're alone!" I exclaimed loudly, sprinting up the stairs as Kirra began to cry, "why did mommy leave you alone?"

"There was a bad man, and mommy went out when he was here," Tamsin explained, watching me, clearly unsure as to whether of not this was a good thing, "she tell me to tell you because she not here,"

"Bad man?" I questioned, watching her curiously as I opened Kirra's closed bedroom door, noting that this was probably the reason she was crying; she hated the door being closed.

"Mommy tell me there a bad man and I tell you because he made mommy go out," Tamsin sighed, "when she come home?"

I ignored her question, setting her down next to her sister as I sprinted to my own room, finding it empty, panic overtook me.

I immediately grabbed my cell out of my pocket, noticing that the wires to the main phones had all been cut, this had been planned.

"DADDY!" I heard Tamsin shout from Kirra's room and immediately ran back to my daughters, I had no idea where their mother was at this moment, but I wasn't going to let them disappear too.

"I need Police, NOW," I insisted, not bothering to let the person on the other end of the line finish their greeting, "she's gone, someone's taken her, I need police,"

"DADDY, WHEN MOMMY COME HOME?" Tamsin all but screamed in my ear, "KIRRA WANT MOMMY,"

"Quiet," I pleaded with her as I heard the phone line connect, ignoring the greeting from this recipient too, "I need help she's gone, my daughter says someone took her, please, hurry,"

"Can I ask who's calling?" questioned the voice on the other end of the line.

I rushed through the name and address, sensing the desperation in my own voice, the fear from my daughters.

I pulled them both into my arms after hanging up the phone.

"It's going to be ok," I soothed, trying to stop their crying, "Daddy's here, it'll be ok,"

"Is mommy coming home?" Tamsin asked, clearly still not understanding what was going on, "she sing bedtime song?"

"I'm going to do whatever I can to get mommy home," I told them, "I won't rest until she's back here, I promise,"

"What if the bad man comes back?" Tamsin continued shooting questions that I didn't really have answers too, "will he take you too?"

"Tammy, do you know who the bad man is?" I saw sense to ask, feeling my stomach drop as she shook her head.

"I not see him," she told me, "mommy close door,"

**Taylor's POV**

"Tay?" I heard Chad ask, trying to shake me awake, "Tay, you've got to wake up,"

"What's the time?" I questioned groggily, refusing to open my eyes.

"Early," he admitted, "but it doesn't matter, Taylor get up,"

I sat up, shocked my his harshness, but worried by the look on his face and the fact that he was dressed, "Chad? What's wrong?"

"Troy just called my cell," he sighed, "Gabi's missing, Tamsin said the bad man took her, we have to go, he needs us, the girls need us,"

I nodded, feeling sick to the core by what he'd just told me, her daughters were the first thing on my mind, they were too young to understand what had happened, and even though I didn't know much, it didn't sound good, Tamsin and Kirra must be so confused as to why mommy's left them.

I quickened my pace as I got up, instructing Chad to get the kids, insisting there was no point in them getting dressed, they'd go back to sleep when they were there, they wouldn't understand either.

**Evan's POV**

"SHE WHAT?" I shouted down my cell, forgetting about what time it was, I waited for a reply before insisting, "when they find out who it is, I'm gonna kill em, I swear,"

I was deadly serious, and I knew my brother in law knew I was, he felt the same way, it was clear.

"Evan?" my roommate asked, walking out of his room, "what the hell it's like four am, why are you awake?"

"I'll tell them," I spoke down the phone, hanging up and regarding my roommate, "I'm not gonna be going to classes for a while, and I'm going to be staying at my sisters, I'm needed there, don't ask questions, I'm really not in the mood to answer,"

"What? Has her husband left her or something?" he asked, making me glare at him.

"I SAID NO QUESTIONS," I yelled, slamming the door as I entered my room, dialling the number of the one person I knew would still be up.

"Ev, isn't it like, four there?" the voice of Isobel questioned, "why are you calling?"

"Isobel, put dad on," I demanded.

"He's asleep," she argued, "he'll be mad if I wake him up now,"

"Isobel, put dad on," I repeated, unable to hide the urgency from my voice, "I can't tell you this, not yet, I have to tell dad,"

"Ok," she mumbled.

The sound of a door opening and then knocking followed her phrase.

"DAD?" Isobel was calling, "DAD, EVAN'S ON THE PHONE,"

I heard the angry voices of my parents as another door opened.

"Isobel do you have any…" I heard him start, before Isobel clearly shoved the phone in his face.

"It's Evan," she told him, "something's wrong but he won't tell me what,"

"This better be good," dad spoke down the phone, "really good,"

"No, dad, it's bad," I told him, "really bad,"

"And you're holding me in suspense because…" Dad asked me angrily, "Just tell me,"

"Gabriella's missing," I blurted out, hearing silence on the line, "she just disappeared,"

"Please tell me this is some kind of a sick joke," he demanded, "there are some things I never want to hear Evan, one of those is the words Gabriella and missing in the same sentence,"

"Dad, it's not a joke," I replied, hearing my voice crack, "she's gone,"

I heard the familiar sound telling me he had hung up, almost picturing him frantically trying to call my sister to no avail, or booking the next flight out, which he would, without a doubt, do.

**Isobel's POV**

"Go and get Carly up," I watched as dad ordered, "NOW!"

He disappeared back into his room; obviously about to tell mom what he had just heard, I hadn't got much, but what I did get, I didn't like.

Speeding into my sister's room I done the one thing I knew that would wake her up, I pulled her pillows out from under her head.

"Ow," she complained as the impact woke her up, "is it five already?"

"No," I told her, "it's just gone four in LA, it's not even two here,"

"I hate you," Carly murmured, "just because you get up at four every day, doesn't mean I want to, if you weren't such a goody goody, you wouldn't be getting up to study the stars at this time, and now you're bringing…"

"SHUTUP," I interrupted snappily, "I think we're going to LA, NOW,"

"Why?" Carly yawned as she sat up, "we're going there next week anyway, why go early?"

"Something happened to Gabi," I relented, "that's all I know, dad and Evan wouldn't tell me,"

I watched as my words registered in her smallish brain as she started protesting.

"No," she refused, "Gabi's fine, I was talking to her last night, we were teasing eachother by IM, she said she'd text me, she was ok, she's ok now, call her, she'll tell you,"

I sighed, knowing that right at this moment I had to be the big sister, the one that always knew what to do, what to say, but the truth was, I knew nothing, I didn't even know the full story, how could I help Carly understand when I didn't even understand myself?

**Taylor's POV**

Police surrounded the house when we arrived; a few of them picked up on our appearance, but didn't seem disturbed by it.

I quickly got the kids out of the car, making my way up the drive to the doorway, and to the man that was blocking it.

"Name?" the man ordered when I reached him.

"Taylor," I told him immediately, "Taylor Danforth, are the girls ok?"

He watched me for a few seconds before looking back into the house, clearly knowing whom I was talking about, "They're at the station with their father,"

"Will I be able to see them?" I questioned, "look, Gabi's my best friend, I'm the girls Godmother, I have to see them, I need to know that they're ok, that they're not hurt."

"Our medical team have examined both children, neither were harmed," the man replied, "this house is a crime scene, if you can help with our investigations then you should talk to Inspector Riviera, if not, you must leave,"

I looked towards the man he had gestured towards and carried Tyler in that direction as I noticed Chad was already speaking to another officer, he was clinging Sophie to his side, obviously shaken by what had happened.

"Excuse me?" I regarded the man I had been told to speak to, "I'm a friend of the family, and I know I probably can't do much, but I want to help, I didn't see anything, but I was wondering if there was anything else I could do,"

"The husband was too distraught, blaming himself," the man spoke in a business tone, "we need a list of people who may have grudges against her or her husband, even the children,"

"Her ex step father," I blurted out without even thinking about it, "he tried to kill her years ago, he got out a few months ago,"

"Does he have a name?" the man continued nonchalantly, "or is he unknown at this point,"

"Kevin Montez," I told him, realising that more names were coming to me, "and Kieran Sanchez and his sister Katelyn Peterson, although she used to be a really good friend, Sarah Sharpe, but that was mainly high school, Suzanne, well I don't know her last name but she's Kevin's partner, Gabi took their son away from them because she was worried they were hurting him, there's Alyssa and her partner, Alyssa's Gabi's half brother and sister's mom, but she never see's them and she always hated Gabi,"

"I guess that gives us something to go on," he sighed as he wrote down the last of the names, "better than what we had anyway,"

I gave him all of our contact details, running my hand through my hair in worry, I honestly didn't know what I would do without her, so I had to do all I could to help them find her.

* * *

**Leaving it there, remember, if you kill me, you'll never know what happens.**

* * *

**Were you expecting that?**

* * *

**It was actually I tie between that and something else, so I asked Kerry which one I should use, and she went with this plot, I may write the other idea as a oneshot, just calling it IP alt sit (Impossible Perfection: Alternative Situation) and put it in my oneshot collection, just to see how it would have worked.**

* * *

**This chapter, was a bit of POV overload, but hey, it's longer than most of my chapters, but it also means I'm not going to rant. I'm going to watch charmed.**

* * *

**Review (7 for next chapter because that took a lot of energy out of me, i had to think to write that)**


	37. Trust

**No ramble, at the beginning or the end because truthfully, I'm watching Greys Anatomy (season 3 DVDs) which I haven't done in**** a long time, I kinda went off of it and started watching Ghost Whisperer more, but now Greys is back in, pretty much stuck in my mind, and this episode is brilliant, heal with love Sydney and a ferry crash, I'm not sure it can get better, it's actually the first of two episodes I based a oneshot on (Check past, present and future)**

* * *

**Taylor's POV**

I watched silently as for the first time in three days, he slept, three unbearable days had kept him awake, three days of not knowing where she was, three days of worry.

In the end his daughters had been the key to convincing him, telling him that he needed to sleep for them if nothing else, that they needed him to be strong, they were confused enough, they were miserable without their mother, and their father being a frantic wreck wasn't helping to sooth them.

"You ok?" Chad questioned, watching me carefully, "I should have asked sooner, it's not just him that's affected by this, he just needed someone, he's blaming himself you know, especially since the phone call, and…"

He cut off as I looked at him, clearly shocked by my expression, I didn't want to think about what had been sent to Troy just the day before, it was sick, it had added to his belief that what had happened was his fault.

_Flashback_

_I watched as Troy glumly sifted through the mail, knowing I wouldn't be able to watch the devastating sight for long, I looked down as Kirra shifted slightly in her sleep, then looked over to the overly confused four year old that had resigned herself to sitting in the corner._

"_NO," I suddenly heard a shout, forcing me to look up._

_I gasped as I saw what he was holding, it couldn't have been clearer, and to me it proved Tamsin's words. The locks of his wife's hair that he was holding in his hands was the last he could take, I watched as he broke down in front of me, not reacting as I called the nearest of the police that had been placed in the home, heartbroken to realise that he was indifferent to the confused crying of his eldest child._

_End Flashback_

That had soon been followed by a call, an incoming call to his cell, monitored by police, a call that had disguised a voice that it was believed we would usually recognise, the voice of a man requesting five million dollars in exchange for his hostage.

It couldn't have been clearer that Gabriella was still alive; her screams for help were only just audible in the background, her fear almost easy to sense from the safety of her home.

I looked from my husband to the doorway as the man we knew as DI Mason appeared.

"I have news," he informed us, noticing the sleeping form of Troy, "best not to wake him, they may have moved, and if they don't find her there… well we don't want to have to take the kids away, if he gets any worse he won't be able to look after them, we won't have a choice,"

"Her parents and sister are in the kitchen," I sighed, "tell them,"

He nodded and left the room, momentarily glancing at Tamsin and Sophie as they slept on the couch.

**Isobel's POV**

"Daddy, she'll be ok," I insisted, "she strong, like you, they'll find her in time,"

He smiled at me weakly, and I knew that the word daddy had given him a little comfort; none of us had called him it in years.

"Mr. Travers?" the three of us looked up at the voice, "it seems that whoever this guy is, he isn't very smart, he didn't block the number when he called yesterday, we've just been informed that the cell he called from is registered to a Katelyn Peterson,"

"Katelyn?" Dad stuttered, "she wouldn't… I mean… she's a friend,"

"Neighbours of Mrs Peterson and her husband insist that the couple were home in Albuquerque at the time your wife was taken," DI Mason continued, "the perpetrator made another mistake, after making the call he failed to turn the phone off, using GPS tracking systems we have managed to confirm a location, we have a team on their way there as we speak, if she is found there, and we cannot guarantee that she will, she may find it easier to speak to us with a family member present,"

"Dad?" I questioned, "You have to go, if she's there you should be there,"

"No," he refused, "they need her to speak Bel, if she's there they need her to talk, after what happened when she was a kid, she can't fully trust me, she needs someone who understands her, someone who's been through all the bad times with her, Bel, she needs you,"

I widened my eyes, nodding in understanding, I'd always understood her more than my parents, I just figured this was something they'd have to do, she was their daughter, I'd always understood that bond to be stronger than that of the bond between sisters.

"Go," he insisted, pushing me towards DI Mason, "help your sister,"

I nodded following the man out of the room, heading towards the waiting car.

**Gabriella's POV**

"Why are you doing this?" I asked again, watching him out of curiosity, "why won't you let me go home?"

He ignored my questions, beginning a rant of his own, "your husband is an incredibly fickle man, I tell him if he gives me money, I'll give him you, he tells me to keep you, says you did the only good you could ever have done for him,"

"No," I cried, "you're lying, he loves me,"

"Doesn't care about you, I always knew you'd made a mistake when you chose him, he never wanted you, he always wanted more, you should thank your sister really, if she hadn't of came to me, if my wife hadn't of figured out that I'd become re-obsessed with you, I wouldn't have taken you, and if I hadn't of done that, you'd never have known the truth about your husband,"

"He loves me," I insisted, "please, just let me go home,"

"This is your home now," he decided, "with me, you never know, we may even get custody of your girls, with him being such an incompetent parent and all, we'll be a proper family,"

"I'll never let you near them," I screamed, "I won't let you hurt them,"

"Kier," came the voice of another male, one who I was yet to know the name of, "Kier, cops are on their way, we have to move, get the girl, we have to go, did you turn that cell off after you made that call?"

I watched as Kieran's facial expression changed, it was clear he hadn't turned it off.

"You idiot," the other man stated, "I told you that they can be tracked if their on, you're the one that wanted the girl, I agreed to help you because I wanted the money, we have to get out of here,"

I noticed Kieran nod and turn towards me, "come on Gabsy, time to go,"

It was then that I was glad that neither man had seen a point in tying me.

I kicked out at him, he recoiled in shock before advancing again, I kicked again, hitting him this time, and he doubled back in pain as the other man stepped forward.

"Don't be like this," he tried, "Kieran loves you, he won't let you get hurt anymore,"

"He's already hurt me," I snarled, "he hurt me when I was fifteen, and he's hurting me now by keeping me away from my family."

The man shook his head, reaching out for me as I kicked again, hitting him the first time.

I jumped up, running from the room, pushing open the door I remember them pulling me through three days earlier.

I continued running, out into the woods, only slightly recalling the feel of leaves and twigs beneath my feet on the journey to the cabin, knowing how ridiculous I must look, but not really caring.

I continued running, passing a gate before momentarily turning to see the figure following behind me, still at a distance.

I screamed as someone in front of me grasped me, holding me close, and muttering words I could hardly hear, I could tell by the murmured whispers and the smell of the person that I didn't know them, but at the same time I knew I was safe, that if someone else was around, whoever was following me wouldn't approach.

"GABI," the scream was familiar, the clear voice of my younger sister, I felt the man release me, only momentarily free as I felt my sisters arms around me, "what happened? Are you ok? We were so worried,"

I didn't answer, sniffing the familiar scent of my baby sister as she continued rambling, just happy to be back with her.

* * *

**That's it, I'm hoping to put the next part up tomorrow, but it depends what happens.**

**I know it's short but it works, trust me on this.**

**REVIEW!**


	38. Interrogation

**I know this whole thing seemed a bit rushed, but since I started it something major happened to the mom of two girls that my m I know this whole thing seemed a bit rushed, but since I started it something major happened to the mom of two girls that my mom looks after, and I really didn't want this story to be gloomy, I needed it as an escape from everything that was going on so I changed the outcome of it so she was found sooner, I was going to give the days a chapter each but I didn't want to write it after finding out that the girls' mom was going to be ok, it seemed too weird, trying to be happy while writing gloomy stuff, so there was a little authors edit, so sorry if it seems a little rushed, truthfully, it was.**

* * *

**This chapter should have been up fifty years ago (about four days ago to normal people), I started it ages ago, but I never got round to finishing it, I left it at the paragraph after Carly's rant days ago, then decided to get all of my homework out of the way, re-became a Sims addict, completed both big city adventure games (San Francisco and Sydney), I've been telling myself daily that I'd update it tomorrow, and I've finally got round to it, I'm updating Making it right next, I think I need to go back to school, I have a set writing schedule for my stories during school term, the last three hours every night that I am actually up, it stops me from falling behind, but in the holidays I forget the schedule and write during the day, well, I did last holiday, I haven't been so good at it on this holiday.**

* * *

**Isobel's POV**

"We were so scared," I repeated, still hugging her, "Dad and Troy were hysterical, Taylor had to look after the girls because they couldn't cope, and mom, she was trying to stay strong for me and Carly, but she wasn't doing very well,"

She momentarily glanced at me before turning back to the plain hospital wall.

The police had insisted on bringing her here, to make sure that she was ok, that she hadn't been harmed in any way, but apart from a few cuts and bruises, she was fine, not that she'd tell us herself, she hadn't said a word since she'd been found, and the silence was almost as unbearable as the torture of the past few days.

"She talking?" DI Mason questioned again, his impatience clearly growing, I shook my head, wondering if he'd get even more annoyed if I stopped speaking, he continued, "if she doesn't talk soon, we won't stand a chance of finding Kieran Sanchez."

I turned to him, watching him blankly, testing his patience myself.

"Maybe that's what she wants, maybe she's covering for him," Mason continued, clearly trying to coax a reaction out of my sister or me, "you never know, she may have wanted him to take her, and this whole little plan went wrong, maybe we weren't meant to find her,"

"Isn't it your job to find the facts?" I stated, "Not speculate on whatever's going on in your warped mind,"

If my sister was hearing this she didn't care, she just sat staring at the same spot on the wall, avoiding the gazes of everyone.

"Miss Travers," Mason took on a informative tone, "It is my job to consider all of the possibilities, not just the ones that those involved believe are more likely,"

"Did you consider the possibility that no matter what you say to try and get her to speak, she's not going to?" I questioned, genuinely curious.

"What would you suggest I do to convince her to talk?" he snapped, "I'd love to know what an eighteen year old child thinks I'm doing wrong,"

"Why aren't the rest of our family here?" I avoided his question by asking one of my own, "the house isn't that far, if they knew, they'd be here by now,"

"We don't want them interfering with her," he insisted, "God knows what they could try and get her to say,"

"GET her to say!" I exclaimed, "she's not speaking as it is, you really think keeping them away from her will make her talk quicker, because if you do you're wrong, the longer you keep them away, the longer it'll be until she even considers speaking,"

He nodded, clearly seeing the sense not to argue with me as he backed out of the room, promising to call them as he left.

**Taylor's POV**

"Tammy," I coaxed, "come on honey come out from under there,"

"WHERE DADDY GO?" she shouted in retaliation, "ME COME OUT WHEN DADDY COME,"

I smiled, "Daddy's gone to get mommy, and if you come out, you, me and Kirra can make mommy a cake for when she gets back,"

"Mommy come back?" Tamsin questioned, "Bad man bring mommy home?"

"Something like that," I decided not to confuse her, watching as she began to crawl out from under her bed towards me, "did you miss mommy?"

She nodded, "and daddy and Kirra miss mommy too, and daddy was upset and I was upset,"

"Daddy's happy now," I told her, "because Mr. Mason called and told Daddy and Nana and Grampy that mommy is ok,"

"Me see mommy?" she asked, widening her eyes in emphasis, "Kirra see mommy too?"

"Yeah," I agreed, "we can all see mommy when Daddy and Grampy bring her home,"

Tamsin smiled as she came fully out from under the bed, "CAKE!"

I nodded, standing up and taking her hand as she pulled me downstairs towards the kitchen.

**Gabriella's POV**

I sighed as I laid back, knowing that blocking everyone out wasn't really the answer, blocking everyone out like I had done years before, it hurt them aswell as me, and not being ready to speak shouldn't have been a factor in whether I talk to my own family.

I subtly looked over at my now quiet little sister, sitting staring out the door of the room at something I couldn't see from where I was, from her smile I could see she didn't take it as a bad thing, but our perceptions of what was good and bad had been different on occasion, and if I was right about what I thought she was watching, then I wouldn't see this as good, I'd see this as annoying, I'd see it as overprotective hovering.

"Gabi, almost everyone's here," Isobel suddenly spoke up, gesturing to the people out of the room, telling them to come in, "they've all been so worried,"

I yawned as my husband appeared in the doorway, running towards me as he saw me, I couldn't help but feel safer as he hugged me, holding me tighter than I knew was possible.

I reluctantly struggled to get out of his grip, turning to face him properly, he looked like he hadn't slept in days, like he was a man who'd had his heart ripped out and the wounds were only now beginning to heal.

I stared at him blankly, momentarily shocked at his appearance.

"I know," he sighed, "I'm a mess, but can you let it drop, just this once,"

"She will," my sister answered for me, appearing beside him, "she's playing the silent game, so she'll be letting quite a lot of things drop, I was thinking we'd let Tamsin roll in mud right in front of her, you know, to see if she keeps this silent thing up,"

He didn't take his eyes off of me, showing his concern without words.

"God, not you too," Isobel complained, "you two really are made for eachother,"

"Bel, your parents are talking to DI Mason, you should go and tell them you're ok," Troy suddenly decided, "tell them what happened when you were off your head and decided to go see Kieran,"

"I already…" she began to protest, wisely stopping as she saw the look he gave her.

I watched as she ran out of the room in search of our parents, felt his comforting arms engulf me again.

"He better hope they find him before I do," he whispered, "I'll kill him if I get to him first,"

I began to cry at his words, finally letting the last thee days get to me as he gently kissed my forehead.

"It's ok," he insisted, "you're safe now, I'm never gonna let you out of my sight again,"

I bit my lip, unable to share his optimism, I wasn't safe, Kieran and his accomplice were still out there, if they wanted me they wouldn't let him get in the way.

**Carly's POV**

"Sooooo," I dragged the word purposely, "what's the plan until everyone gets back here?"

"Kid, I'm not your personal assistant," Chad pointed out, "I don't follow your every demand, you go find something to do while we're waiting for your family to come back,"

"No wonder Tam makes fun of you," I snapped, "you really are an idiot, you think I want to be stuck here with you, Taylor, your kids and my nieces, you think I don't want to be with my sister right now, with the rest of my family, I stayed here so the only people in this house that hold any importance to me right now, don't get as scared and confused as they were just this morning, I need something to occupy my mind, but you don't care, all you're interested in is not being treated like a personal assistant, you don't care about other people's feelings, you say that what happened to my sister got to you, but what about me, no one ever thinks about me, no one cares how I feel, but I deal with it, and I deal with it because I know that I don't have any other choice,"

I could tell he was shocked by my relative outburst, but I felt like a huge weight had been lifted, for the first time in months I felt better, I felt like I could finally cope.

"You should talk to someone about that," he decided, sitting across the table from me, "ramble away,"

"Do I look like either of my sisters to you?" I questioned, "I do not ramble, Gabriella and Isobel ramble,"

He watched me for a while, clearly trying to determine whether or not I was serious, "Carly doesn't ramble, ok, got it, so, talk, or do you not talk either?"

"Yeah, I talk," I snapped, "but not to you, why the hell would I tell you anything, you don't know me, you know nothing about me, you're my sisters friend not mine, you don't care, so why even pretend you do,"

"Are you on your…" he began, stopping at the voice behind him.

"CHAD!" Taylor exclaimed, "can you come help me, in the kitchen,"

"But I was…" he started to complain.

"Now," she demanded, leaving the door.

"We'll talk later," he told me, " you can tell me exactly how you're feeling, and I'll tell your dad, great idea, huh kid,"

"Not really," I disagreed, "you don't get it, they can't know, not with everything that's going on,"

He grinned as he gave me a thumbs up and left the room, I shook my head and sighed, glad to be alone for a while, knowing I shouldn't have told him what I did, he'd tell my parents, I knew for a fact that he would, and when he told them they'd be more worried about me than my sister, and she's been through a whole lot more.

**Andrew's POV**

"You have to talk to them sometime," I tried telling my daughter once again, "the more they know the more chance they have of catching him,"

"I can't go through it again," she whispered, "daddy, it's too hard,"

"I'll be right there with you, it won't be hard, you've done it before, you can do it again," I insisted, "I know that it's surprising to hear me of all people say this, but what Kieran did, it's much worse than what Kevin did, Kevin was never going to kill you, I know him, he couldn't, he wouldn't have put Isobel through that, not after he faked his own death, but Kieran, he took you because he doesn't care about your family, he didn't even think of us, of your daughters, Kieran, he needs help, he could be a danger to himself, talk to them, you don't know who else he could hurt if he stays free,"

She looked at me, tearing her eyes off of the blank wall in front of her, "it was too hard, I can't do it again,"

She turned back to the wall, avoiding further eye contact.

"Cookie, you don't have much of a choice," I explained, " and this blanking out thing, you can't ignore them all forever, you can't live your life talking to no one but me, I won't be here forever, we don't even live near eachother anymore, you need to communicate, with Troy and the girls at least,"

Her eyes darted to me at the mention of her daughters.

"They missed you," I continued with the subject, aiming to keep her attention, "they were confused, we didn't tell them, but they knew something was wrong, they're smart kids, and they just want to see their mom, but the police are going to do all they can to keep them away from you until you talk,"

I watched as she nodded, "I'm not talking to them alone,"

"I told you I'd be there," I reminded her, "like when you were finally ready to speak to them over Kevin,"

"Go and get them," she muttered, prompting me to leave the room.

"She'll talk," I explained to the group of family and the two detectives that were standing outside the door, "on the condition that I'm with her when she does,"

"Finally," DI Mason sighed, "lets get this over with, then we can go and find the actual criminals,"

**Troy's POV**

I sighed as I sat down again, looking over at Maria as I noticed she was watching me intently.

"She'll be ok, you know," she smiled, " they're just asking her a few questions, she'll be fine, you worry too much,"

"Considering the past few days," I replied, "I don't worry enough,"

"You need to stop blaming yourself," Maria commented, "This wasn't your fault,"

"It is," I insisted, "I should have been there, I was late, if I'd have been there, Kieran wouldn't have got her, this wouldn't have happened,"

"You couldn't have predicted it," she pointed out, "you and I both know that if you knew this was going to happen, you would have made sure that you were the only person in that house,"

"But I wasn't there," I continued.

"Just stop," she interrupted, "I will not have another word of you insisting this is your fault, she's fine, he didn't hurt her, he didn't force her into anything, she's ok, that's the important thing, but you blaming yourself isn't going to help her or the girls, they need you to be strong, she won't be able to look after them, you read about these things all the time, she won't trust herself around them, around you, that's why she won't talk, somewhere in her unconscious she has figured out that as long as she doesn't talk to you, she's safe, you have to prove that thought wrong, even though she doesn't know she has it, you're not going to do that by blaming yourself,"

I nodded, looking away to a clock on the wall, "they've been talking to her for almost three hours, how much time to they…"

I cut off as the door opened and both detectives walked out.

I watched as DI Mason walked straight past us and down the corridor as his partner turned to us.

"You can take her home now," he informed us, "but we may need to speak to her again,"

I nodded as he left, standing up, turning as her dad led her out of the room.

My eyes locked with hers as she looked up and she immediately left her father's arms.

She fell into step beside me as we began to walk towards the exit, not saying a word as I took her hand and softly kissed her temple.

"You ok?" I asked, knowing she was unlikely to talk herself.

She nodded, keeping her eyes on the doors in front of us.

I felt her family following close behind, but kept all of my attention solely on her, "your dad helped?"

She nodded again, flinching as I pulled her a little closer.

"It's ok," I insisted, "I won't hurt you, and I'm not going to let anyone else hurt you, let's just get home, I know two little girls that desperately want to see their mommy,"

* * *

**THE END**

* * *

**No, not of the story, leaving it here wouldn't really work, seeing as Kieran is still on the run, this is the end of the chapter, Getting Through has to end before this story anyway, and seeing as that's getting nowhere, and I don't want this one to be inhumanely long, I'm gonna have to have a Making it right month or something, that'd be like, eight chapters or something, seeing as I always aim for two chapters a week overall.**

**I'll probably be a bit reluctant to end this story actually, even though i really want to write the epilogue, because it's the last in a trilogy, and the first in the trilogy was the first HSM story i ever wrote, and the charmed one i started before Heartbreak, still isn't finished, i haven't updated it in atleast five months, because i find these easier to write.**

* * *

**I doubt Making it right will end anytime soon, I think Kerry might forbid it anyway, and trust me, she would kill me if I do something she tells me not to do, but then she wouldn't get my new story ideas, although one of them she already has (but that's the Ghost Whisperer one, my HSM's are top secret until I actually write them, which i havent with my new awesome idea)**

* * *

**Woooo, i'm so proud of myself, this is over three thousand words, semi-longsomeness (no i didn't count the words in my mind, i used the word count on word)**

* * *

**Anyways Review the POV overload see chapter (5 for next chapter)**


	39. Birthday

**I'm gonna leave the making it right cliffy for now, even though the next chapter is half written, I'll put that up sometime this week hopefully, depends when I get round to finishing it, homework has doubled recently, which is kinda annoying, and I'm handing most of it in late already because it's impossible to get it all done for when they all want it in.**

* * *

**I have made Getting Through progress though, I know what I want to happen, but then, I have for about three weeks now, I just don't know how to write it in a way that would make sense, but I guess I'll figure it out sometime, maybe when I'm a little less stressed, I can write while stressed if I know exactly what I'm putting, seeing as basically Getting Through is almost over, there isn't much left for me to put, which already means no sequel to it as of right now, I may change my mind but I've pretty much set myself against it now.**

* * *

**In other news, Vanessa's new song Sneakernight, who's heard it, it made me laugh the first time I heard it, now I have it on so much my whole family are getting annoyed with it, I guess you could call it my favourite song right now, but my favourite song changes on a weekly basis so it won't last.**

**Those of you who live in England or the parts of America that get it, who watches Eastenders? I stopped sometime before Christmas (around the time this story was started) and only just started again, it got boring, but I kept reading spoilers to see if it was worth going back to, and it was.**

* * *

**OMG, I just restarted the comp without saving the authors notes, and they're still here, that hardly ever happens on this computer, this one is messed up, it deletes everything, but hey, I don't have to type it all again.**

**Anyways, onto the actual chapter**

* * *

**Troy's POV**

"Wake up," I smirked, shaking her gently, laughing as she pulled the duvet over her head, "you have to get up sooner or later,"

"No," she refused, her voice muffled, "I'm sleeping,"

I sighed and pulled the covers from over her head, "I thought we'd got past this whole sleeping until noon thing,"

"I like sleep," she complained, "and I'm tired,"

I sat down besides her, finally showing his evident concern, "I know you had the nightmare again, it woke me up, it's alright not to be ok over this, it's ok to be scared, but right now we have the girls and pretty much your whole family sitting downstairs waiting for you to get up, besides, you have to get up today, I know you know what the date is,"

"I cancelled it," she decided, "I'm old enough already,"

"So you don't want your presents," I teased, his grin widening as she quickly sat upright at the last word, "I guess if you don't I could always give them to my mom on her birthday,"

"Give," she demanded, holding her hands out to him.

"You have to get up for them," I informed her, laughing as she frowned, "they're downstairs, Bel's guarding them with her life,"

"You know what," she stated, "I hate you,"

"Awwww, I love you too," I grinned as I stood and began heading towards the door, "if you're not down in ten minutes, I'm coming back to get you,"

I let out a sigh as I reached the top of the stairs, knowing that sooner or later she'd be ready to talk to me about what happened, but accepting that it was very unlikely that that would happen for a while, I'd already given up trying to bring the subject into conversation, every time I directly mentioned it she clammed up, telling her it was okay to be scared was about as much as she'd let me say.

I rushed down the steps and back to the people gathered in the living room.

"Mommy okay?" Tamsin questioned as she saw me, questioning me with wide eyes as well as words.

"Yeah," I forced a smile, unsure of the answer myself, "Mommy's okay,"

"Chad and Taylor wanted to talk to you about something," Carly spoke up, "in the kitchen,"

I nodded, backing out of the door as Maria distracted both Tamsin and Kirra.

"Hey," I announced as I walked into the kitchen, catching both of my friends' sympathetic gazes, "she's fine, she's not going to try and kill herself, she's not an emotional wreck, she hasn't put her life on hold, is that what you wanted to hear?"

"No," Taylor denied, still watching me carefully, "we wanted to know if you were okay."

"Why wouldn't I be?" I replied, "she's home, we're all here together, what else matters?"

"You're freaking about their safety," Chad told me what I already knew, "you haven't let anyone be alone with her except her close family, not even us,"

"I have to protect her," I insisted, "I can't let it happen again,"

"So how are you going to handle today?" Taylor questioned, "you can't watch her all the time, especially when we're out,"

"I can," I insisted, "I don't have a choice, I dropped my guard once and he got her, it won't happen again,"

They nodded in unison as I turned, heading back to my family in the other room, leaving them behind to talk to eachother about what to do next, not that it'll work.

**Gabriella's POV**

"MOMMY," I heard Tamsin demand from the door of the room, "You get up NOW!"

"I am up," I tried, knowing she wouldn't fall for it.

"Nooo," she pointed out, running over and jumping up on the bed, "me get daddy if you no get up,"

"Not Daddy!" I exclaimed, mocking horror.

She nodded matter of factly before tugging on my arm, "up, up, up, we go to park, Uncle Evan said so,"

"How do I sleep at the park?" I questioned, watching as she began to think about it.

"You not sleep at the park," she decided, "you play on swings,"

"Don't you think Mommy's a little too big for swings?" I quizzed.

"Nooo," she answered, "not too big for swings,"

"What am I too big for?" I decided to ask, interested in what she'd say.

"Mommy too big for sleeping," she giggled, tugging at my arm again, "you get up nowwww,"

"Here's what we're gonna do, ok," I smiled, "you tell daddy, that I'll get up if he'll buy us ice cream when we're at the park,"

Tamsin grinned and jumped off of the bed, "me go tell daddy now and I tell him I want chocate,"

I watched her leave as I finally dragged myself out of bed, encouraged by the prospect of ice cream and presents.

"Gab," my sister's voice shocked me, making me jump before I turned from the closet to face her, "come on, the girls are really excited, you have to get up,"

"Bel, I am standing, you know," I pointed out, "it's just, I don't have anything to wear,"

"Typical," Isobel smirked," you and Carly, you're the same in that sense, I swear you two have the same illness, infact, I won't help, I'd be useless, I'll go and get her,"

I nodded as she left the room running downstairs to get our other sister.

**Carly's POV**

I looked up expectantly as Isobel ran back into the room, her eyes on me from the moment she came in.

"Gab's has decided she has nothing to wear," Isobel started, "she wants you to go help her,"

I nodded, smiling to myself as I stood up, feeling my mom's hand on my arm.

"Take Kirra," she encouraged, "try and get her to open up to you,"

I nodded in understanding as mom handed me my niece.

"You want to go see mommy, Kirry?" I questioned, smiling as her face brightened up.

She'd pretty much attached herself to Gabriella over the past few days, this morning had been the first time since we'd got her back that Kirra hadn't screamed about not being in the same room as her for over 20 seconds, Gabriella hadn't minded her clinginess, she'd been a bit clingy to both Kirra and Tamsin herself. **(It seems weird typing it in that order, I'm used to putting Tamsin and Kirra) **

"Up the stairs we go," I sang, making Kirra giggle as I began climbing the steps, "all the way to mommy,"

"MOMMY," Kirra exclaimed excitedly.

I watched my sister's face as I walked into the room; saw her smile as she took Kirra from my arms as the toddler reached out to her.

"I heard there was a clothes dilemma," I smirked, "I'm here to help, can't have you looking bad can I, it reflects on me, after all, and the chances are we'll be in the public eye at the park, I should probably check what Bel's wearing too, you never know, she may even tell me how far she's gone with Michael while I'm there,"

"What is with you two and that particular subject?" Gabriella questioned, "it is kinda wrong Carls, she's our sister, we don't need to know that, but if you do ask her, make sure I'm there, she used to ask me the same thing all the time,"

"We have got to be the weirdest sisters on the planet," I commented, "actually, thinking about it, we're probably the most dysfunctional family on the planet,"

"Things are about to get a whole lot weirder," my sister decided.

"What do you mean by that?" I questioned, watching as she suddenly turned away from me, becoming evasive, "Gabi?"

"Nothing," she tried covering, "it's nothing, seriously, it's all good, I'm all good, everything is fine,"

"Just so we can skip the joke," I began, "I'm not a Geek, and I may not be as smart as Isobel, but something is up,"

"Yes," she agreed, "if you look up inside you will see a roof, if you look up outside you'll see the sky, so there is always something up,"

"You know what I mean," I pointed out, "tell me,"

"Nothing's wrong," she insisted, "you're just paranoid, can you hurry up, we are going out you know,"

I sighed as I noted her obvious subject change before turning back to her closet as she gave Kirra all of her attention.

* * *

**Bad News: After the next chapter, Making it Right is going on a short hiatus, I have one more to put up, then I'm going to try and concentrate on Getting through and this story, it'll last until I at least have an idea of how to finish Getting Through or, if I haven't got any ideas by May, I'll start with Making it right again, because, as I have mentioned before, there will be a Making it right month to stop me from finishing this before Getting Through, I've decided that this month will be May, so it's going to be a short hiatus starting when I get the next chapter up.**

* * *

**I have exams coming up, so Making it right May might not be that big, the exams are mainly in may, only good thing is I won't be going to school again until September after three weeks, when the exams start I go on study leave, so I only have to go into school for exams, and for some lessons if the teachers decide they want us there, and they have to fit it around our exams too.**

* * *

**Anyways, Review! (five for the next chapter)**


	40. Waiting

**There is this seriously annoying thing stuck in my head, the plotline of a film, it's about a woman whose husband fakes her death and takes their son, she finds him and he agrees to give her the son, but instead he hires a kid to play the son and the kid leads her to a mausoleum where she is knocked out and buried alive with a skeleton, she gets out, ends up killing her husband and gets the son back, it's an awesome film, what is bothering me is that I can't remember what it is called or who is in it and I really want to see it again, I'm pretty sure that it's based on a true story, if you know the name, then I'll dedicate the next chapter to you for being a genius.**

* * *

**Ok, the chapter…**

* * *

**Isobel's POV**

I smiled as my eldest niece ran over to me, chocolate ice cream coating her mouth as she stared at me.

"Mommy say Isobel silly," she informed me after a while of staring.

"Well I say mommy's silly," I told her, "and Carly's silly too,"

"Where Sophie?" the four-year-old questioned, "Sophie my friend,"

"Sophie went with her mommy to get more ice-cream," I explained, "they shouldn't be long,"

Tamsin nodded as she sat down next to me and began sipping from a bottle of cherryade.

"Your mouth is all pink," I stated when she put the bottle down.

"Me go get mommy to clean mouth," she decided, standing up.

I glanced over at my sister before pulling my niece back down, "I'll clean your messy mouth, missy, leave mommy and daddy in peace,"

"But what if mommy goes to sleep?" Tamsin asked, "she wanted to sleep and she ask to sleep at park,"

"She won't go to sleep," I assured her, "daddy won't let her,"

Tamsin nodded, retrieving the bottle of drink and sipping it carefully again.

"Hey Bel," I heard Carly's voice, "can you take Kirra, there's photographers here, I'm a bit to cool to be seen with a kid,"

"You are too vain for your own good, Carls," I pointed out as I took Kirra from her, "besides, I'd hardly call paparazzi photographers, they're creeps, invading people's personal lives like it's everyone's business, it's wrong,"

"But they do take good pictures," Carly decided, grinning from ear to ear, "we're gonna be famous in a few days Bel, everyone will know who our family are,"

"You want that?" I quizzed, "you want a life where you can have no secrets, a life of constant pain because of what the tabloids say?"

"You don't!" Carly exclaimed, "imagine how awesome it would be, having practically everyone falling at your feet, everyone serving you, wanting to know you, it'd be cool, that life would be worth it, no matter how much the pap's try and interfere,"

"Gab said it's not worth it," I told her, "she said it's hard, knowing that there could always be someone, lurking in the bushes, wanting one single incriminating photo that could bring you and your whole family down, knowing that there will always be someone wanting to get the first picture of your child to sell to a daily tabloid, they had to get a court order to stop pictures of Tamsin and Kirra being shown before they're eighteen, they shouldn't have had to do that, it's wrong,"

"There is such a thing as being too protective," Carly retaliated, "Why not just let the girls be famous too?"

"Gab wants them to have a normal life, like other kids do," I explained, "how can they do that if their pictures all over papers and magazines every other week?"

"Why should they be normal?" Carly asked sceptically, "why should they be normal when they can be special?"

"They can be special without being famous," I commented, but knew I would get nowhere, "look, just go and get your picture taken, you'd obviously rather be there than helping to take care of our nieces, whom, after tomorrow, we won't see so much,"

"We're leaving tomorrow?" Carly questioned, "I thought we were leaving on Friday,"

"Why did you think I was spending so much time with them now," I told her, "after tomorrow, it'll only be pictures and the occasional phone call, Kirra can barely speak yet, we won't be there for that, not like we were for Tamsin,"

"There'll be plenty of other times we'll be there for," Carly decided as she stalked off, back in the direction that she had come from.

"When's she gonna learn, Tammy?" I whispered to my niece, "when will she learn?"

**Gabriella's POV**

"Listen," I whispered to my husband.

"I don't hear anything," he commented.

"Exactly," I grinned, "nothing, no screaming from the girls, no whining from my sisters or nagging from my parents, no nothing,"

"I think Isobel may have hijacked the girls," he told me, "she's really gonna miss them, you know,"

"They'll miss her too," I insisted, "but they'll still be in touch, they have to be, because, what happened, well, it made me think,"

"About?" he questioned curiously.

"If anything happens to us," I started, "if we die, or for some reason we can't look after the kids anymore, I want Isobel to have them, they have a better relationship with her than they do with the rest of my family and your parents, she'd look after them,"

"That's true," he agreed, "but I'm not planning on dying anytime soon, and seeing as I can't actually live without you, that means you can't either,"

"And if I want to?" I smirked.

"Tough," he replied, "I'm forbidding it, no disobeying the rules, or you will be punished,"

I smiled as I lay my head on his shoulder, "How do you punish someone that's dead?"

"By dying yourself, joining them, then making them your slave," he decided, "but none of this really matters, because neither of us are dying, ever, we're going to be immortal, that way, neither of us have to die first,"

"I could live with that," I sighed, "as long as both of our crazy families can be immortal too, and our friends, annoying they all may be, but they're all we've got in the long run,"

"Pap's," I heard him mutter under his breath, immediately making me sit up in alarm.

"Again?" I exclaimed in a whisper, "when will they leave us alone?"

"When I quit basketball maybe," he replied, "things like this make me want to,"

"Then what would we do?" I asked, "I'm not working now, not after everything, I can't, I can't leave the girls, it's too hard, I have to be with them and if you quit…"

"I didn't say I was going to," he pointed out, "I just said that things like this make me want to, you really need to stop stressing out over everything,"

"I'm not stressing," I insisted, "I swear I'm not, why do you always assume I'm stressing?"

"Calm down," he tried, "this can't be good for you, everything is ok,"

"Calming down is the last thing I can do right now," I told him, looking around warily, "he's still out there, none of us are safe as long as he's out there, what if he comes for me again, or one of the girls,"

"Shhhhh," he soothed, pulling me closer towards him, "you're ok, we're all ok, what is up with you recently? You're over-reacting at the slightest little thing,"

"I am not over-reacting," I argued, knowing full well that I was.

I automatically moved my hand and began twirling the old T necklace around my finger, it had always felt wrong to stop wearing it, so I'd just kept it on, it was always there, no matter where I was, to me it was the most valuable material thing I owned.

"Still wearing that old thing, huh?" he commented, smiling as he spoke, "it's not even real Silver,"

"I don't care," I admitted truthfully, "I love it,"

"So I've noticed," he smirked, "out of all of the real jewellery you have, you still wear the old necklace that isn't even real,"

"I'm ok," I insisted, sensing the worry that he was trying to cover up, "I'll tell you, when I'm ready to talk, I'll tell you, but right now, I'm not ready, please, don't make me talk about it yet,"

"I'm not going to force you to tell me anything you don't want to," he assured, "you can tell me however much you like, in your own time, I can wait, but you have to promise me that you will eventually talk about it,"

"I will," I whispered almost inaudibly as I saw the faint flash of a camera from the bushes to the right of us, "I will tell you, soon,"

**Maria's POV**

"Look at them," I cooed; gesturing for Andrew to look at our daughter and her husband, "knowing that he's here makes it a little easier to leave her,"

"I still don't think we should," he admitted, "he wasn't there, Maria, he may not have had anything to do with Kieran taking her, but he wasn't home, if he'd have been home, none of this would have happened,"

"He loves her," I argued, "you think he would have been out if he knew it was going to happen,"

"I don't care how he feels about her," Andrew continued, "that doesn't change the fact that I don't know if I can trust him with out daughter, our granddaughters, and we still don't know where exactly he was that night,"

"I do," I admitted, "he was rambling, about how he should have taken an hour off of work to pick it up, it was when she was still missing, he was incredibly late home, because he was picking up part of her birthday present, he was hoping that if he got it at night, when he got back she'd be asleep, and he could hide it from her, he didn't expect to find her gone,"

"Who picks up presents during the early hours of the morning?" Andrew quizzed sceptically, "who's still up at that time of the morning?"

"Many people," I stated, answering his question, "and when she gets her presents later, you'll see why it was important he had the chance to hide this one when she was asleep, otherwise he'd never have kept it from her,"

I sighed, noticing how unconvinced Andrew looked, he didn't trust Troy anymore, but not because he couldn't, because he didn't want to.

* * *

**That's the longest chapter I've written for a while, it's a few words longer than the last chapter, how priveleged is that, I could have made it longer, but if I'd have done that then it would have meant putting it up later (as in, hours or days later), which I figured you guys wouldn't want, I'm not actually sure how many chapters are going to be on events at the park, I'm thinking two right now but it depends on how many ideas I get between now and when I write the next few chapters.**

* * *

**BREAKING NEWS: OMG, KERRY UPDATED HER STORY!!**

* * *

**I'm a bad writer, i swear, i have like, zilch ideas of how to finish getting through, i only need to write two chapters, but every time i try to just sit and write it, i get bored and watch an episode of The Tribe, then writing it completely slips my mind, then when i finally remember, the same thing happens again, this is bad because the whole making it right hiatus was so i could finish of Getting through, in four days time Making it right comes off of hiatus and i still have no Getting Through ideas, which makes me think that i should put that on hiatus for a while until i do have ideas.**

* * *

**Anyways, review (five for next chapter, however long it takes me), I'm off to watch The Tribe**


	41. Returns

**Isobel's POV**

"IBEL," Kirra screeched demandingly as I finished explaining my weeklong absence to my boyfriend over the phone, "IBEL BAD,"

"Why am I bad, Kirry?" I questioned, looking her in the eye.

She pointed at my cell, which was now lying on the blanket next to the picnic basket as she shook her head disapprovingly.

"Only mommy's and daddy's use smell phones," Tamsin explained for her sister, "you not allowed,"

"Everybody uses them," I tried telling the both of them, remembering why Kirra would be saying it was bad.

_Flashback (still Isobel's POV)_

_"Pretty," Tamsin smiled at the object in her hand, her sister also in awe over it as she sat by her side, "it light up Kirra, I saw it I did,"_

_Kirra squealed in excitement as her sister placed the object in front of her._

_"Mommy calls it a smell phone," Tamsin tried explaining, "but it doesn't smell of anything,"_

_"Are they meant to have that?" Carly asked me, "I'm thinking they shouldn't,"_

_I looked up from the magazine I was pretending to read while intently listening to the children's conversation._

_"Tammy," I coaxed, "can you give me the phone?"_

_"Nooo," Tamsin answered, "it mommy's smell phone,"_

_"I can give it to mommy," I reasoned, "right now if you want me to,"_

_"Nooo," Tamsin repeated, handing the cell over to her sister, "Kirra give it to mommy,"_

_I looked to my younger niece as she picked up the phone and brought it towards her mouth._

_"Kirra, no," I told her quickly, "that would be…"_

_"Why is my daughter about to eat a phone?"_

_I looked up at the sound of my brother-in-law's voice._

_He quickly took it off of her, kneeling down to seem less intimidating to his daughters._

_"Girls," he sighed, "only mommy's and daddy's use cell phones unless there's a real big problem,"_

_"Me not use it ever again," Tamsin grinned, "and Kirra not too, will you Kirra?"_

_"PWETY," Kirra shrieked, ignoring her sister as she tried reaching for the cell._

_"No," Troy refused, "not for little girls,"_

_Kirra nodded, I smiled as she made it look like she had understood, it was always sweet when she did that._

_End flashback_

"Not everyone," Tamsin argued, "Mommy's and daddy's,"

"Lots of big people have them," I tried, almost laughing at her sceptical look, "It's so I can call my mommy if something goes wrong, you don't need them because you're always with your mommy,"

"Mommy not let us get lost," Tamsin stated, "never, never, never,"

"I know," I answered, "she's a very good mommy isn't she,"

"She best mommy," Tamsin insisted, "and you best auntie Isobel,"

"I'm your only auntie Isobel," I pointed out, "but then I guess your mommy is your only mommy too,"

"She Kirra's mommy too," Tamsin reminded me, "There Mommy and there daddy, and there me and there Kirra,"

"That's right," I agreed, glancing over at Kirra as she began giggling hysterically.

"Hey," Taylor spoke as she came over, Sophie by her side, "babysitting?"

"Pretty much," I answered, "wouldn't trade it for anything though, I won't get to look after them much for a while,"

"You'll be at college before you know it," Taylor smiled, "your sister's already taking advantage of Evan being here, and let's face it, once you're up here, she'll use you so much more than she uses him,"

"I'm not sure if I'll be able to come anymore," I admitted, "Mom's been freaking out saying she doesn't want me living on campus after what been happening to them, it's like they think I couldn't deal with having a roommate or something, and they're freaking over the whole vandalism thing Evan's girlfriend told them about, Dad's talking about renting and apartment, but I'm not sure I want too, he's paying so much for college already that I don't want him to spend more, but he won't take no for an answer, he's insisting that I'm going to be living off-campus if I come here,"

"What did Gabi say?" Taylor quizzed.

"We haven't told her," I admitted, "Dad, said that we shouldn't let my whole living arrangement dilemma bother her,"

"You should," Taylor decided, "she'll find out that you're not living on campus eventually, and then she'll ask questions, and trust me, you do not want her asking questions, especially right now, because she's crazy,"

"I meant to ask you about that," I told her, glad that she had reminded me, "What is up with her? And don't lie to me, I know it's got nothing to do with the whole Kieran thing,"

**Carly's POV**

"What would someone as young as you be doing hanging around here alone?" came a voice from behind me.

I whipped my head around, turning to face the voice, "Michael?"

"Hey little cousin," he smirked, "long time no see, but that's because my father's an idiot, I can't blame you for him,"

"Is Ali here too, what about Lola and Tia?" I quizzed excitedly.

"Alistair's around here somewhere, Mom's on her way with Tia, I'm not sure about Lols, depends if mom managed to convince her or not," Michael told me, "we weren't exactly gonna go ahead and miss another of Gabi's birthdays were we, how old is she now, twenty six?"

"Twenty seven," I corrected, "although I think she'd prefer twenty six,"

"And you're seventeen," Michael showed that he remembered at least my date of birth, "sorry I missed your birthday, I had to work, couldn't get away,"

"Your dad doesn't want you round us, does he?" I asked, "it's ok, he never did like us, he hates Bel, he only stuck up for her once because of Gabriella, he knew that your mom would do anything for Gabi so he figured that he should too, and that Gab would want him to help her sister,"

"Dad doesn't like anything to do with mom," he admitted, "their divorce was nasty Carls, Tia never see's him because he won't deal with mom, but I don't think she cares, he hardly see's Lola either, she see's him when she visits us, but she pretty much ignores him then,"

"I can't believe that Aunt Anita dragged Tia from Albuquerque to LA just for Gabi's birthday," I admitted, "I know that she's and free spirit and all, but really,"

"Carly," Michael interrupted, "Mom would never miss a family birthday, no matter how far she has to travel, she's always sent you and Bel cards hasn't she?"

"Yeah, but she couldn't be there," I explained, "dad wouldn't have let her if she tried,"

"All because my dad's a jerk that couldn't keep his mouth shut," Michael commented, "we have a strange family, Carls, I guess that's why life is so interesting,"

"I guess," I smiled, "come on, you should come see everyone, and look out for your mom, I haven't seen her in so long, I kinda miss her, and we need to get my dad to let her near, although it's a park so technically it's a free country…"

"Still the same old rambling Carly," Michael laughed, "nothing changes with this family,"

"Come on," I insisted, pulling him towards the rest of my family and my sister's friends.

"What's this?" I heard dad ask as we reached them, "Michael, not that small rebel of a boy I remember, that's for sure, working for your dad, I hear,"

"Yep," Michael told him, "he still specialises in making my life hell, he doesn't actually know I'm here, he probably would have made me work if he'd known I was planning on being here,"

"Probably," dad agreed, "never did like that man, but you haven't got much chance of keeping it a secret from him, not with my big shot son in law here, wherever he is, the paparazzi follow and all that, it does seem pointless actually,"

"That just makes it better," Michael decided, "I can't wait to see the look on his face when he figures out where me and Alistair are today,"

"Alistair's here too?" Dad asked, "How did you all find out about the party?"

"Bella called Mom," Michael elaborated, "she knows that it wasn't my mom that said that stuff, she's accepted that it was my dad and that's why they divorced, she invited them, that was just after the whole kidnap thing, she thought that seeing us could cheer up Gabi,"

"Has it?" Dad questioned, "Has it cheered her up?"

"I haven't seen her yet," Michael told him, "and it looks like Alistair is late, which is actually just typical him,"

Dad nodded, "Carly honey, take your cousin to Gabriella, she'll want to know he's here,"

**Gabriella's POV**

"This silence is getting weird," I stated, "it's like they've all decided to leave us alone,"

"And that would be a bad thing?" Troy questioned, "alone, I like that word, it's a good word,"

"I can go," I smirked, "if you want to be alone,"

"Alone is only good if I'm alone with you," he argued, tightening his grip around my waist.

"But then you're not alone," I pointed out, "So you're using the wrong word,"

"It doesn't matter," he insisted, "all that matters, is us, our girls, our friends, your crazy family,"

"My family are not crazy," I defended, "you just think they're crazy because you're too normal,"

"Carly's a cheerleader," he pointed out, trying to back up his statement, "And Bel's your clone,"

"Isn't it against the law to clone people?" I asked, watching him for an answer.

"I don't think cloning you would be a bad idea," he commented, "I could live with that,"

"You haven't changed," I smirked, "you're still the same suck up you were in high school,"

"I thought we'd already decided that I wasn't going to stop sucking up," he continued.

I looked up as I heard a voice, gasping as I saw whom it belonged to.

"You're happy to see me then?" he questioned as he approached, "personally I'm disgusted to see you,"

"Shut up, worm," I grinned, looking up at the standing from of my little cousin.

"I prefer, King of the worms," he told me, "ruler of wormish cousins everywhere,"

"Alistair Martens, why are you gate crashing my birthday?" I questioned, mocking horror.

"Because I can," he answered, "plus, Bel invited me,"

"Why would she invite you?" I quizzed, "she thinks you're a dork,"

"Really?" he questioned, clearly amused, "and when was it she told you this,"

"When she was ten," I admitted, "but I think she still knows, deep down inside, that she was right when she said that you were a dork,"

"You see what I get?" Alistair asked Troy, "I have the decency to show up and my cousin's birthday party, and she insults me,"

"Isn't that just what happens between you two?" Troy replied, "you turn up, she insults you, you point it out to me, then the process repeats itself,"

"She won't be insulting me when she knows what I know," Alistair smirked, "she definitely won't,"

"What do you…" I began, hearing myself cut off as I heard another voice.

"GABRIELLA,"

* * *

**Hahahahaha, no I'm not giving away too many secrets right now, the identity of the person that has just arrived will obviously be in the next chapter, which will be next month, as it is now officially Making it right Month.**

* * *

**Not even Kerry knows who it is, I actually haven't given away any of the rest of the story to her, so only I know it, although she knows a bit about the epilogue, because she was helping me plan it.**

**Does anyone have any idea how i can have a document that expires in -29 days, because apparently i do, my last oneshot.**

* * *

**Anyways, REVIEW (see how much you can get by June)**


	42. Departures

**Making it right month is now over, (after seven chapters, which is bad, I could have done more) which means back to the triple writing, which, considering I have about three weeks of exams left isn't such a great thing, but, three weeks everyone, three weeks then my summer officially starts, the younger years of my school have to wait until the end of July, but my exams mean that my summer starts sooner, yay.**

* * *

**Wow, the last chapter was put up exactly thirty one days ago! (even more surprising: i can count to thirty one)**

* * *

**Isobel's POV (cos she's a legend)**

"You're being an idiot," I stated as I sat down next to my sister, wary of the rest of our family that were still in the kitchen, "I'm guessing that it was Kieran that told you that crap,"

"I don't want to talk about him," she complained, "can't we just forget it,"

"Not while you believe a word he said about anything," I replied, "you can't keep pushing your husband away because Kieran told you he was having an affair, Kieran's Kieran, what do you expect from him, he's a jealous moron, why would you trust him over Troy, he kidnapped you for crying out loud, the man is a psycho, you believed a psycho and that is so unlike you,"

"You're ranting," Gabriella told me, "which is so like you,"

"Ranting seems to be the only way to get through to you nowadays," I defended, "you're not being fair, Troy's done nothing wrong but you're punishing him, stop being stupid, what Kieran did isn't Troy's fault, he couldn't have done anything to stop it, he wasn't here, so what, neither was I and you're not blaming me, are you even thinking about how much your behaviour is hurting him, and what about the girls, they can tell something's up,"

"Bel, I didn't tell you about any of this," she pointed out, "you can't know this, I didn't tell you,"

"I asked Taylor," I admitted, "don't get mad at her over this, how else was I meant to get the truth, you sure weren't going to tell me, and even she didn't want to, but I made her, I made her show me the emails you sent her about it, and I made her because you need help, I know you don't want to admit it, that you want to be strong for the girls but you can't be strong for them unless you can trust yourself, trust everyone around you, you have to talk to someone about this Gab, I'm worried about you,"

"I'm fine," she tried, "you shouldn't be worrying about me, there's nothing to worry about, I promise you I'm fine,"

"No you're not," I exclaimed, "you say you are but if you're still believing any of that stuff that Kieran told you, you're clearly not fine, you need to get a grip on reality, what happened to you was bad, we all know that, but your family need you, I need you, and if you're thinking like that you can't be there, please, talk to someone, if not for me or for Troy, then talk to someone for Tamsin and Kirra,"

"What if Kieran was right?" she asked, finally showing weakness, "what if he is having an affair?"

"What if Chad took ballet lessons?" I quizzed, noting the confusion on her face, "It's not likely, though there is more chance of Chad taking ballet than Kieran telling the truth,"

"You don't know that," she argued, "how can you say this stuff when you don't know that it's true,"

"Because it is true," I sighed, "you know it is, you can see it every day, in the way he talks to you, in the way he kisses you, in the way he can sit in a room full of people and notice no one but you,"

"You haven't been here," she decided, "he's changed since we moved here,"

"No," I insisted, "you just want to believe he did because of the lies Kieran was spinning you, none of it's true, normal you wouldn't believe any of it, so why do you believe it?"

"I don't know," replied, "I just do, this whole thing just put me on edge,"

"What aren't you telling me?" I asked, "and don't say nothing, you're hiding something, but not just from me, from everyone, what is it?"

"I'm not hiding anything," she claimed, continuing as she saw my obviously unamused expression, "I'll talk to him, ok? If it'll make you stop harassing me, I'll talk to him,"

"That's all I ask," I smiled, "well, I want you to stop pushing everyone away too, but one step at a time right?"

"Right," she agreed, "aren't you meant to be on your way to the airport,"

"We're leaving any time now," I explained, "stay in touch,"

"I was thinking I'd just forget you existed," she smirked, "and if that didn't work I was going to sell you to the circus for a little extra cash,"

"You've been saying that since I was eight," I pointed out, "it still hasn't happened,"

"There's still time," she teased, "question is, would they want you?"

"Of course they would," I smiled, "everyone wants me,"

"Of course," she replied, "I'm gonna miss you so much,"

"You'll see me soon, and I'll call all the time, you won't get the chance to miss me," I promised, "and before you know it, I'll be in college and pestering you for dinner every night to avoid eating canteen food, I'm guessing it's just as bad here as it is in high school,"

"Surprisingly it's not," Gabriella answered, "besides, even if it was I'd turn my phone off and lock the doors,"

"You're not that evil," I claimed, "Carly is, but not you,"

"Bel, we have to go," I heard mom tell me, before addressing my sister, "I'll see you soon sweetheart, stay safe,"

"I intend too," Gabriella answered as mom hugged her, "you're gonna have to let go mom, seriously, choking here,"

"Stop being so over-dramatic," mom complained, reluctantly pulling away, "if I want to hug you to death, I'll hug you to death, ok?"

"Ok,ok," Gabriella relented, "as long as you don't actually kill me, the girls would be very upset,"

"I'll call you when we get home," I told her, "and no, I don't care what time it'll be here, I'm calling, and there's nothing you can do about it,"

"NO," we all heard Tamsin shout as she followed dad into the room, "GRAMPY NO GO,"

He smiled before crouching down to her level, "Tammy, I have to go, but I'll come back real soon, ok?"

"Grampy stay," Tamsin insisted, standing her ground, "Mommy say this home so you not go, you stay home,"

"Tam," Gabriella spoke up, continuing as the four year old turned to her, "this is our home, Grampy has to go back to his house so he can look after their little puppy,"

"Puppy come here," Tamsin insisted, "Grampy not go,"

"Tam," he sighed, "if you let me go I'll bring lots or presents when I come back,"

"Don't bribe my niece," Isobel ordered as Tamsin nodded happily and ran back into the kitchen.

"Bel, she wasn't going to let me go," Dad explained, "what else was I meant to do?"

"Kidnap her?" Carly suggested, "I wouldn't mind but I'm guessing Gab wouldn't be too impressed,"

Dad rolled his eyes at Carly before hugging Gabriella, "keep out of trouble, kiddo,"

"I'm not a kid," she argued, taking a step back from him, "Carly's the kid,"

Carly scowled as I laughed at our sister's comment.

"We'd best be off then," Dad stated, "Girls, Maria,"

"Can't we at least come with you to the airport?" Gabriella questioned.

"Gab," dad began, "if you're at that airport I won't get on the plane, you know you can't come,"

She frowned, nodding as she opened the front door, "I guess this is bye for now then,"

"Don't look so sad," I laughed, "I'm gonna be on the phone to you in a few hours,"

"Me too," Carly promised, "cheer up and get the girls in bed on time for once, it should be easier without us here, and you always made sure I was in bed, even when I was thirteen, just before you moved out,"

"I got married when you were twelve," she corrected, "not thirteen, I moved out when you were twelve,"

"Whatever, it's just a number," Carly grinned, "we'll call in a few hours,"

"We will," Dad assured, "but we really have to go, or we'll miss our flight,"

"Miss your flight then," Gabriella insisted, "stay longer,"

"Bel and Carly have school," Dad pointed out, "they've missed too much already, and you wanted me to check on Charlie remember, you wanted me to make sure Anita was looking after him properly,"

Gabriella nodded, "I know, I know, I don't have to be happy about it though,"

"Of course you don't," Dad agreed, gesturing the three of us towards the rental car, "but that doesn't change that we have to go,"

I noticed him quickly closing the door before she could answer his last statement, knowing that leaving her here was killing him.

"She's not alone, dad," I assured, "she's got Troy,"

* * *

**Review, I have a tight schedule now, so six or seven for the next chapter.**


	43. Help

**The great return of Impossible Perfection (that isn't that great), I would have updated sooner, but getting through is officially getting somewhere, well, the next chapter of it is, probably won't last, but it's almost over so what does it matter now?**

**All my stories are now closing in on their ends, with the exception of the endless oneshots and maybe Making it Right. This story has seventeen chapters left after this, so how quick the end comes depends on how quick I write them, but I may get it done by Mid August. Getting Through will hopefully be finished before then.**

**Anyways, i'm too bored to rant, so read...**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

I looked up as the front door opened, temporary fear coursing through me until I saw my husband walk through it.

"The girls are in bed," I told him as I turned back to the book I was reading, "you promised them you'd be here,"

"I got held up," he explained, "where's Taylor?"

"She left," I replied, "Tyler and Sophie were tired,"

"I told her to..." he began, cutting off, "never mind,"

"You told her to stay with me until you got back," I finished, "because you think I'm incapable of looking after myself and our children without someone else,"

He sighed, walking over and sitting down next to me, closing the book as he did.

"It's not that I don't trust you," he began, "I do trust you, it's just that i'm worried about you,"

"I'm fine," I repeated, unsure whether I was trying to convince him or myself, "I don't need a babysitter,"

"You say that," he spoke softly, "but you don't act like it,"

"I know," I admitted quietly, "I have to ask you something,"

"Shoot," he smiled, probably out of relief that I was going to talk.

"When I wasn't here," I began, "before I got away from him, he told me some things,"

He nodded, urging me to continue as I looked up unsurely.

"Things about you," I continued, "he made it sound so real, but Taylor and Bel, they both say it's not true,"

"What did he say?" Troy questioned, "you have to tell me now you've started,"

"He said," I stuttered, "he said that you were having an affair, and that you'd paid him to take me, he even had money, Troy, it seemed so real,"

"He manipulated you," Troy snapped angrily, "he manipulated you into believing that crap he was telling you, Taylor and Bel are right, it's not true, I'd never do that, of all the sick and twisted things to say,"

"Are you mad at me?" I questioned, "for ever believing him,"

"Oh, god, no," he denied, his voice raised, "it's not your fault, don't you dare blame yourself for this,"

"Stop shouting," I whispered quietly, knowing that didn't hear it, "please,"

"Daddy?" asked a small voice, making us both turn to look at the stairs, "no shout at mommy, daddy,"

"I wasn't shouting at mommy sweetie," Troy explained, "Not at mommy,"

He made his way up to her scooped her up in his arms, carrying her downstairs and over to me, sitting down next to me with her resting on his lap.

"You shout," she insisted, "no shout at mommy,"

"Tammy," I sighed, ruffling her hair, "daddy wasn't shouting at me, I told him something about the bad man and he got angry,"

"They find bad man?" she questioned, looking up at the both of us wide eyed, "bad man not take mommy again?"

"Not yet, princess, but he won't take mommy again," Troy told her, making her frown, "they will find him though, and he'll be in a lot of trouble,"

"As will you, little Missy," I commented, "if you don't get back to bed,"

"Not tired," she yawned, "it morning, Kirra get up,"

"It's not morning," Troy told her, before turning to me, "Chad came to pick Taylor up and gave Tamsin candy,"

I laughed at his statement, knowing he didn't mean it as a question as I nodded, "yes,"

"Kirra too," Tamsin laughed, yawning again as she did.

"I'll kill him," Troy decided, "who gives a kid sugar before they go to bed?"

"You," I commented, "Chad, Zeke, basically all of your friends,"

He smiled before looking back down at Tamsin, who was half asleep, "I'll take her back up,"

I nodded and leaned back, watching him carry her up the stairs, half-expecting to hear her protest.

The sound of the doorbell made me jump, and I nervously glanced over at the door before checking my watch. Eleven fifteen, who would come over at eleven fifteen?

Slowly I stood up, feeling the fear of mere weeks ago come rushing back, the memories flooding my head.

I stood, unsure what to do, just staring at the door and the shadow on the other side of it.

"Who was at the door?" I heard Troy ask as he came back downstairs, "Gab, what's wrong?"

I continued staring, noticing him reach the bottom of the steps and head to the door and opened it.

"What are you doing here?" he immediately asked, "you shouldn't be here,"

"We had to know if you were ok," came a Male voice, and I gave a sigh of momentary relief before a whole new sense of unease came over me, I knew the voice, I hadn't heard it in months, but I knew it.

"We were ok," Troy snapped, "you scared her half to death, turning up here at gone eleven,"

He glanced over at me, noticing that I was still staring, but seemed more relaxed.

"We would have been here sooner," replied a female voice, and his face softened a fraction, "but the plane was delayed, how is she?"

He stepped aside from the door, letting the people walk in, and closed the door behind them.

"Gabriella," Lucille smiled when she saw me, "You're ok? You didn't get hurt?"

"Mom, stop fussing over her," Troy complained, "she's not a kid,"

"If I want to fuss over her then I'll fuss over her," Lucille shot back, "understand?"

"I wouldn't fight her," Jack advised, "she's been worried sick,"

"Why are you here?" Troy questioned, only just loud enough for me to hear, "I told you that you weren't welcome,"

"The circumstances have changed," Jack insisted as the pair glanced at me, "you're mother wanted to see you, it'll be next to impossible to get her to leave and she said that I had to come, besides, can I not be worried about my son's family?"

"Worry from afar," Troy replied, still shooting nervous glances at me, "you've hurt her enough, she's scared that Kieran's going to jump out and grab her again, you being here won't help,"

"Maybe you should get her brother to stay with you for a while," Jack ignored Troy and continued giving advise, "incase Kieran comes back, he could always bring others,"

I watched Troy as he pondered his father's words, clearly wondering whether having Evan stay with us would be beneficial in the case that Kieran did return.

"We'll be here as long as you need," Lucille snapped me out of my reverie and made me listen to the conversation I was currently meant to be involved in instead of eavesdropping, "to help with the girls, with anything you need, really,"

I nodded, not really wanting to reply, but knowing it would be rude to say nothing, "I'm kinda tired, I think i'm gonna just go to bed,"

Lucille nodded in a sympathetic manner, "It'll all get better in time,"

I nodded disbelievingly, knowing that it was unlikely that I would feel better about anything until Kieran was behind bars and was no longer a threat.

**Troy's POV**

I watched her as she walked up the stairs before turning to my mother and shooting her a questioning glance.

"She said she was tired," Mom explained, "she looks tired, has she been sleeping?"

"Everytime she does," I sighed, "she has nightmares, she's been avoiding sleep for a while,"

"Have you tried counselling?" Dad put in, "it could help,"

"My wife does not need counselling," I argued, "she needs me, she can talk to me, she doesn't need some stranger telling her what to do, telling her how to feel,"

The room fell into an uncomfortable silence as the atmosphere tensed.

Minutes later Mom spoke, "So, how are the girls?"

"They're good," I replied, weakly smiling at the subject change, "they like LA, Tamsin's behaviour's even improved a little since we moved, probably because out here we can all ignore the family rift that Dad created,"

"Nice how it all comes back to me," Jack complained quickly, "She didn't make an effort to get along with me either,"

"You intimidate her, dad," I exclaimed, "she avoids people that intimidate her, she always has, when she's around people like that, she backs off in order to defend herself, you should have made the effort, but you didn't because you decided not to like her on the day you met her,"

"That's not true," he defended, "It's not that I don't like her it's just that I've never though that she's right for you,"

"She is right for me," I insisted sharply, "I'm sorry if that doesn't make you happy, but I don't want some trophy wife, I want her, I love her,"

He regarded me for a moment before nodding, "I guess I just have to get used to that, then,"

"Yeah," I shot back, "you do,"

"Get to know her, Jack," Mom encouraged, "give her a chance, you'll love her,"

"Why did you come anyway?" I asked curiously.

"You needed us," Mom decided, "you didn't even call, we had to find out about this on the news, we should have been told, and you have to go back to work, you can't lose your job but you can't leave her alone, so we'll be here,"

"I went back to work," I informed them, "Coach said I had to, they've been keeping me later too, Taylor's been with her everyday, she should have been here when I got back, she wasn't, she left, I trusted her to stay and she left,"

Mom nodded in understanding before glancing at dad.

"I know I should have called," I continued, "but my wife was missing, I didn't even think of calling you, and when she was found, I was concentrating on her and the girls, calling you wasn't as important when it came to being sure that they were ok,"

"But she's not ok, Troy," Mom spoke, "she needs help, it may not seem like it, but she's scared of everything now, especially opening up, if you don't get someone to talk to her soon, she could close herself off completely,"

"I won't let that happen," I claimed, "I've tried talking to her, she doesn't want to talk about it, she'll only tell me little things, i'm not going to force her to tell me something she's clearly not comfortable with mentioning,"

"She has to talk sometime," Mom insisted, "maybe she'll talk to me,"

"You're welcome to try," I replied, "I just don't think she'll go for it, she'll talk when she's ready,"

"You two make yourselves scarce tomorrow," Mom ordered.

"I have work," I sighed, "It's still hard to leave her every morning,"

"You go to work," she told me, "Jack, find something to do with the girls, spend time with them, and don't let them think that anything is wrong, take them out for ice cream or something, that way there'll be nothing to distract Gabriella when I get her to talk,"

"Try and get her to talk," I corrected, "you don't know she will,"

"Get her to talk," Mom insisted, "I'm not planning on giving her any choice but to talk to me, it's what she needs, you may not be persistent enough to get anything out of her, but I am, it's for the best,"

"As long as you don't upset her," I agreed, "the last thing I need is her upset, especially as she'll connect the dots and blame me,"

"I'll tell her you don't know," Mom promised, "she'll never know,"

"I'm gonna go and check on her," I told them as I began walking towards the stairs, "I should probably show you where to sleep,"

They nodded and followed me upstairs, bringing their bags with them.

"Talking to her won't be easy," I warned in a whisper, "she's said she's fine so much now I think she's started to believe it herself,"

* * *

**Still too short for my liking (even though it is longer than quite a few previous chapters), but if I add to this chapter I can't guarantee that it will make sense, so I figured it's best to leave it here.**

**I'm not sure about this chapter because I think it seems a bit too rushed.**

**Anyway, 5 or 6 reviews for the next chapter.**


	44. Admittance

**Ok, chapter 44, that's an even number, which is good because I don't like odd numbers, they're so... odd, like Kerry, and my sister.**

* * *

**The next chapter of Making It Right will be up... when I've written the random list that has to go with it, which could be any time between tomorrow and three weeks time, although I think I'll go with sometime next week.**

**I rock at the Yes No game, my sister got so annoyed because she couldn't get me out, it was funny, and when I finally got bored and said No, she didn't notice and continued asking questions.**

**Ok, onto the chapter...**

* * *

**Lucille's POV (NEW POV ALERT, NEVER USED BEFORE IN THE TRILOGY)**

"I like to bake," I stated, glancing over at my daughter-in-law, "Takes my mind off of things,"

She nodded as she continued to stir the mixture, "The girls will just love having cookies in the house,"

"Troy told me that you bake a lot," I commented, "Wouldn't they be used to having cake and cookies,"

"I haven't baked since..." She began, cutting off before adding, "Well, before then,"

"Why not?" I asked, knowing that starting a conversation about simpler things was usually the easiest way to get someone to open up.

"What if I don't get it right?" she questioned, looking over at me.

"Of course you will," I smiled, "You've baked before, you know what your doing, you just need to trust yourself,"

"The last time I did that," she sighed, "he got me, he almost got the girls,"

I noted that she didn't seem able to say Kieran's name before replying, "So you're not trusting anyone, that's got to be pretty hard,"

"I don't know how to anymore," she tried, "I want to, but I can't,"

"Forgive me for saying," I started, "But if you didn't trust me, you wouldn't be telling me this,"

She turned to me, clearly thinking about my words before answering, "I guess,"

"It's not the trust issue," I stated, "what's really up with you? Unless I feel I should tell Troy, whatever you say me will stay between us,"

"I'm scared," she whispered, "i'm scared he'll come back, that he'll hurt the girls,"

"And?" I pressed, knowing that getting her to continue would probably be difficult, but determined to get her to, "I know that's not it, women that are scared usually don't push their husbands away unless it's their husband that they are scared of, what else?"

"What if..." She began before shaking her head and turning away.

"Gabriella," I spoke, "What are you afraid of? That he blames you for what happened? That this whole thing has made him love you less?"

I watched as her head shot up at my last phrase, and felt surprise run through me before I spoke again, "You think he doesn't love you as much because of this?"

"No," she denied, hesitating before changing her answer, "Maybe,"

I put the last of the cookies in the oven before walking over to her and lightly leading her into the living room and sitting her down.

"That would never happen," I stated, "Everytime we see him, or talk to him, he talks about you and the girls, always the three of you, always saying how perfect you are, there is no way on earth that this has changed his feelings for you in any way, do you understand?"

She nodded weakly, unable to make eye contact as she stared out of the window.

"You get that I have to tell him this, right?" I quizzed, knowing that she wouldn't agree, "He needs to know that you feel this way,"

"You don't have to tell him," she rushed nervously, "He'll hate me, I don't want him to hate me,"

"He could never hate you," I explained, reassuringly smiling at her, "He loves you too much for that, even this morning I could tell that leaving you here while he went to work hurt him, he wanted to be here, or take you with him, he likes to know that you're safe, and right now the only safe place for you and the girls, is, in his mind, with him,"

"You don't know that," she refused to believe me, "You don't know that he'll never leave, you don't know,"

"Yes, I do," I assured, "I know because I know him, leaving you is the last thing on his mind right now, he told me last night that he just wants you to talk to him, it hurts him that you won't, I know that you want to, don't let anything stop you anymore, let him in, it's what's best for both the two of you and the girls,"

She nodded slowly, "When he's at work, I always feel like talking to him, but he's not here, and when he gets home, I don't feel like talking anymore,"

I nodded, before excusing myself and going out into the backyard.

I took out my cell, looking back to check that she hadn't followed me before dialling my son's number.

"Mom?" he asked when he answered, "Is everything ok?"

"She's scared," I told him, "I got her to talk, not much, but it's more than you knew, she's scared,"

"Scared of what?" He immediately asked, clearly worried, "You have to say, you can't just tell me that she's scared and stop talking,"

"She thinks that everything that's happened has changed the way you feel about her, she thinks you don't love her anymore," I informed him, "I've convinced her to talk to you about it, but I think you should get home before she changes her mind, I'll go and join your father and the girls, give the two of you time to talk everything through,"

"I should have known," he sighed, "I should have thought, I should have reassured her,"

"There's nothing you could have done," I insisted, "she didn't want to talk to you about it, but there is something that you can do now, come home and talk to her while she's still willing to, tell your boss that it's an emergency, that you have to come home, I'll back it up if need be,"

"Stay with her until I get there?" he asked, "I don't want her to be alone,"

"I'll stay," I reassured, "As soon as you get back I'll catch up with your father and the girls, just, be quick, give her less time to change her mind about talking,"

"I'll be as fast as I can," He promised, "Nothings going to keep me away, I'm coming whether coach agrees or not,"

"I'd better get back to her," I pointed out, "she doesn't know I called you,"

"Ok," he agreed, "Tell her I love her,"

"Tell her yourself when you get home," I replied, "hearing it from me won't help her, she needs it to come from you,"

"I'll see you soon," he sighed, informing me that he knew I was right, "don't let her know i'm coming, she could get nervous and change her mind,"

The familiar bleep told me that he had hung up, causing me to follow suit and head back inside.

**Gabriella's POV**

I watched as Lucille stood and headed into the kitchen to check the cookie's out of the oven, knowing that her excuse before was a lie, she'd told me she was going to check on the cookies earlier, which clearly wasn't true, no one checks on cookies that much. I rested my elbows on my knees, my head in my hands as I sighed, having an idea of exactly what she had gone to do twenty minutes ago, and knowing that if I was right, I could expect my husband to be home some time in the next ten minutes, she'd have already told him, and, like her, he'll be set on convincing me it's not true, but it has to be true, things have changed since I got away from Kieran, even before then everything was different, from the day we'd moved his behaviour had changed around me.

I sighed as Lucille walked back into the room, looking up to meet her eyes.

"You ok?" she questioned, watching me curiously, while showing obvious care, "You seem stressed, do you need to sleep, you look tired,"

"I'm ok," I replied, continuing to watch her, "I am tired, but i'm ok,"

She nodded, glancing out the window behind me.

I turned to see what she was watching, noticing that she was looking at my husband's car as it pulled into the driveway.

I turned around, focusing my attention on Bailey, whom was laying in his basket watching Lucille warily in the mistrusting manner he showed to anyone whom he was not used to. His Puppies, Izzie and Ozzy, sat by the basket their father was in, as if they had a duty to protect him.

The three Labrador's looked like the perfect canine family as they surveyed the room, their glossy black coats almost glowing in the sunlight that was streaming through the window as their dark eyes glimmered in alertness.

I jumped as I heard the door open, wondering how long it would be until I was ok with that sound again, before turning around to see my husband standing in the living room doorway, a bouquet of lilies in his right hand, his bag in his left.

He smiled when he noticed me looking, as Lucille walked past him in the doorway, talking aloud, "Is that the time? I promised Jack and the girls I'd go and meet them,"

I half smiled at how clear it was that she was doing, forcing us to be alone together was probably one of her idea of giving us no choice but to talk to eachother, with no one else in the house, there was no one else for either of us to talk to.

He walked over to me as the front door closed and Lucille hurried off in the direction that her husband had walked off in earlier in the day with my daughters.

Troy walked towards me, smiling as he handed me the lilies, "for you,"

"I'd be mad if they were for someone else," I commented, before adding, "what did you do that was so bad that you bring me flowers?"

"So suspicious," he chuckled, before jokily adding, "Can I not buy my own wife flowers without getting the third degree?

"No," I decided, "you're up to something,"

He made sure we were making eye contact before speaking, "They're a sorry in advance, for upsetting you,"

"You didn't upset me," I stated, confused, "you're apologising for something you didn't do?"

"I'm going to upset you," He admitted, "But you have to understand that i'm only going to because I care about you, and I honestly don't see how else I can help you get through this,"

I nodded warily as he sat down next to me and continued, "These nightmares, talk me through them,"

"I don't want to," I refused, "I see them when i'm asleep, I don't want to talk about them too,"

"Talk me through the nightmares," He repeated forcefully, "You don't have a choice here, you may as well just get it over with,"

"Please," I began crying, not wanting to relive the pain I felt when asleep until I had to, "Don't make me,"

He repeated the same words again, brushing off everything I said in between, before I finally gave in.

"I SEE YOU DIE, OK?" I shouted, "I SEE HIM KILL YOU AND THE GIRLS, AND TAKE ME,"

He sighed at my words as he tried to wrap his arms around me, a gesture I automatically rejected, pulling away from him and moving to the opposite sofa.

"It's not real," He insisted, " It's just a nightmare, I won't let it ever become real, and when it comes back tonight, I want you to tell yourself that, tell yourself it's not real,"

I glared at him, watching him momentarily flinch before regaining his composure as I turned away.

"Why do you think that what happened has made me stop loving you?" He asked quickly, making sure his question was to the point, he continued when I didn't answer, "Talk,"

"I don't want to talk to you," I snapped, hoping that he'd back off, "Leave me alone,"

"I don't care whether you want to talk to me or not, you're going to," he replied nonchalantly, "Because everything that we need to talk through, we are going to talk about now, while we have the chance, i'm not going to let things go back to how they were in Albuquerque, when all we did was fight, i'm not going to let that happen, and if forcing you to talk is the way to avoid that, then I have to force you to talk, so, tell me, tell me why you feel that way?"

"I don't know," I sobbed, "You've been different since I was found, you don't trust me, you won't let me do anything for myself and I've heard you sighing, I've heard your phone conversations with Chad, you resent that you're doing everything for me, I didn't ask for this, but you blame me,"

"You think that because I resent doing everything, I resent you?" He asked for clarification, clearly watching as I nodded, prompting him to continue, "I have not ever, and will not ever, resent you, you and our girls are the best thing that's ever happened to me, I know that I've been acting a little hard done by, but with worrying about you and the girls, work, and looking after the house, it's stressful, of course i'm going to act a little different, I didn't know that it upset you,"

I sat staring off into space, avoiding his gaze, refusing to look at him, but I was only momentarily surprised when I felt his arms wrap around me, the surge of relief shoot through him when I didn't push him away as he whispered, "I'm sorry for doing that,"

"You already apologised," I pointed out angrily, letting him know that I was far from happy over what he'd done, "That wasn't fair,"

"No, it wasn't," He agreed, "But it was for your own good,"

"What if our lives don't go back to normal?" I quizzed, "What if everything that's changed is permanent?"

"If you think about it, not much has changed," he claimed, "I still love you and the girls more than life itself, we're still a family, we still have our friends, our daughters are happy and healthy, what else is there?"

"I don't work anymore," I replied, turning to face him as I pulled out of his grip, "Now that I think about it, I think that I want to go back to work,"

"Then go," he smiled, "They have daycare at the offices you'd be working at, the girls would still be in the same building as you, and just after you called them and told them you weren't going to start, I called them back and said you needed time and asked if they'd give you that, they understood, Gab, they said they'd give you four months to decide what you wanted to do, I knew you'd want to go back in the end, I know you too well,"

"Thank you," I muttered, "I'll call them tomorrow, I need to think more about it,"

"Ok," he agreed, softly kissing my forehead, "We good?"

"We're good," I assured him, "whether it stays that way is up to you,"

"What do you want?" He quizzed, pouting playfully, "Nothing too impossible I hope,"

"I want my kitchen back," I informed him, "Sorry babe, but you can't cook, I don't want you to poison our children, you have to let me cook,"

"You dare insult my cooking?" He grinned, "I'll have you know that I am a wonderful chef, just three nights ago I drove all the way to pizza hut myself to get dinner,"

"Which was probably why it tasted good," I laughed, before becoming serious, "The kids and I cannot live on fast food, neither can your parents, it may be fine for you, but it's not for us, I want my kitchen back,"

"If I say no," He began, "You wouldn't divorce me, would you?"

"I might," I smirked, "but I could also enrol you in a cooking course, two hours a night for three months..."

"The kitchen's all yours," He interrupted, "I am not going on a cooking course,"

"Except for the washing up," I put in, "I'll let you do that,"

"How kind of you," he answered, "but then, putting dirty dishes in the dishwasher can't be that hard,"

"Dishwasher's on the Fritz," I decided to point out, "found that out this morning,"

"If I tried to fix it, I'd make it worse," He admitted, "I've been given the day off tomorrow, how about we all go and buy a new one,"

"Because kids love shopping for dishwashers," I shot back playfully.

"Ok, how about my parents look after the kids again," he suggested, "and just you and me go,"

"That would be perfect, but.." I began, pausing to fully take in his facial expression before continuing, "Kirra already thinks we're abandoning her, the look on her face this morning when your dad took her just broke my heart, I can't put her through that again. Tamsin was fine with it, but Kirra screamed,"

"Ok," He re-planned, "So my parents take Tamsin, and You, me and Kirra go shopping for a new dishwasher,"

"How would that make Tamsin feel?" I pointed out, catching on that he thought I was just making excuses, "Maybe we should just all go, give your parents a chance to explore the city alone, the girls will just have to deal,"

"That sounds like a plan," he smiled, pulling me into another lingering hug, "Just the four of us, we can take them out for lunch or something, we haven't done that in a while,"

"We haven't," I agreed, looking over at the dogs before laughing.

"What?" He asked, following my eyes, "They're just sitting there,"

"Remember when we told Bel that we'd named the puppies Izzie and Ozzy," I grinned.

"She freaked," He replied, understanding why I was laughing, "She thought that we'd named Izzie after her to annoy her," **(Actually, when I came up with Izzie I was thinking about Greys Anatomy, not Isobel, the weird thing is, I actually like Izzie from Greys, she's a cool character, I just had to use the name.)**

"Tamsin named her though," I remembered, "could have been after Bel, How did you come up with Ozzy?"

"It went well with Izzie," He explained, "I went through the alphabet in my head trying to find something that worked, and that was the best one I came up with,"

"They named their puppy Donny," I told him, "I asked Carly, she said it was dad's idea, apparently he likes saying Donny the dog,"

"That is just like your dad," He commented, "Although it seems a little more Carly,"

"My thoughts exactly," I agreed, "Carly and Bel should be calling later actually, and Evan's coming over for dinner, Dad's asked him to keep an eye on me, not that either of them will admit it,"

"They're just worried," He insisted, "They are allowed to do that, you know,"

"You worry enough for all of them put together," I smirked, "They don't need to worry when you're around,"

"No complaining about the worrying," He answered, "Complaining about the worrying won't make it go away,"

"I can try," I pouted, "Worrying gives you wrinkles,"

"I must look really old then," he joked, "between you and the girls the only thing I can do is worry, you're trouble, all three of you,"

"We're misunderstood," I argued, "You don't understand the complexity of the female mind,"

"No man does," He decided, "The female mind changes by the second,"

"Your ego gets bigger by the second," I retorted, resting my head on his shoulder, "you really do love yourself,"

"I am sorry," He muttered into my hair, "about earlier, I didn't know what else to do,"

"You were right," I assured, "I was scared, and confused, and I still am, I don't know how to trust anyone, not since he took me, I guess the difference now is, i'm willing to try, that's down to you,"

"Because i'm brilliant," he exclaimed, "It is like everyone says,"

"Of course," I agreed, half-yawning as I closed my eyes.

"I'm still a pillow then?" I heard him smirk, "Some thing's haven't changed, remember the nightmare isn't real, i'm not planning on dying, or letting the girls die, any time soon."

I nodded tiredly, before finally drifting off into a comfortable slumber.

* * *

**Methinks this may be the longest chapter I have written to any full length story ever, and it only took me four days, and lots of fizzy drinks.**

**Seriously though, it's like 3771 words long, which is amazing for me.**

**The end is more FLUFF than anything else, and everyone knows how much I hate fluff, although, the fluff part was surprisingly easy to write.**

**Anyways, i'm co-writing a story called The Cobra with Hazierox, so I have to go and write the next chapter of that now.**

**So long, people.**

**Review, there's a cool button at the bottom of the page that lets you do that.**


	45. Memories

**Ok, weirdly enough, I started the chapter after this, before this chapter, which I guess is normal for me, so... moooving on (cow's go moo), cows are cool, the should be anthologised, I like that word.**

**I passed all of those exams I was taking, yay me, and started a youtube channel with my friend (link on profile).**

* * *

**No one's POV (cos no one's important)**

"This is good," Evan commented, taking another bite of the chicken he was eating.

"Mommy cook," Tamsin smiled proudly, "not daddy, daddy not good,"

"I'm an excellent cook," Troy replied, mocking outrage, "I'm the best cook I've ever met,"

He looked up from his daughter to the opposite side of the table, chuckling slightly at the looks on both his wife's and his mother's faces before adding, "besides Grandma and Mommy,"

"Daddy silly," Tamsin sighed, "Kirra not be silly like you daddy,"

"Kirra will be silly," he answered, "we'll all be silly,"

"Uncle Eban not be," Tamsin insisted, turning to him for clarification, "you not?"

"Nope," he assured her, "I'll be your old serious Uncle Evan,"

"Older than Mommy?" Tamsin asked curiously, "Mommy say she not get older anymore,"

"Mommy will get older," Evan explained, "She just doesn't want to, but I'll always be younger than her,"

"But mommy isn't old," Troy added, "Grandad's old,"

"How old?" Tamsin quizzed, turning to Jack, "Are you old?"

"I'm older than mommy and daddy," he admitted, "and i'm older than all of your aunties and uncles,"

"Your hair not as big as Uncle Chad's," Tamsin reasoned, "so he older,"

"No, that just means he needs a haircut," Jack laughed, "I think he'd appreciate it if you and Sophie did cut his hair for him,"

"I not do that," Tamsin answered, looking down, "It not nice,"

"Tamsin?" Troy asked, automatically sensing that something was wrong, "what's happened?"

"I not say," she replied, "I tell Sophie I not,"

"Ok," he answered, deciding to try another tactic, "How about we play a game?"

"What game?" Tamsin questioned, "I win games,"

"Well," he smiled, "This game is called, Telling daddy what's wrong, and you play it, using chicken, because you say what's wrong, but you have to make it look like the chicken's talking,"

"I want to play," Tamsin exclaimed, oblivious to his aim, "I start daddy,"

"She's starting guy's," he announced to the table, "she called it first,"

He picked up his fork, catching a piece of chicken on it before speaking, "What's wrong with you today?" he asked in Tamsin's favourite fairytale accent of his as she coped him with her much smaller fork.

"I went to Sophie's," she replied, also in a made up voice, "and Uncle Chad and Auntie Taylor were fighting, and it made Sophie cry, and when they saw me watching, Uncle Chad shouted at me to go back to Sophie's room because I was nosey,"

Troy looked up at this wife in shock, his friend, whom he'd known since preschool, had not only been fighting in front of Tamsin, but he'd also shouted at her.

"Daddy, your turn," Tamsin complained, "you have to play, what's wrong with you today, Daddy?"

"Well, Daddy's angry," he told her, only remaining calm so as to not scare his daughters or distress his wife anymore than she had been over the past weeks, "because Uncle Chad shouldn't have shouted at you, but he's also happy, because mommy and daddy talked today, and everything's ok,"

He looked up at his wife and smiled, her expression matching his, they both knew than Tamsin had sensed the awkwardness between them.

"Daddy, you have to ask mommy now," Tamsin insisted, "game,"

"Ok, ok," he sighed, "Mommy, what's wrong with you today?"

"No, no, no," Tamsin whined, "You not call my mommy, mommy, she not your mommy, she my mommy and she Kirra's mommy, grandma your mommy, I ask, Mommy, what's wrong with you today?"

"Nothing," Gabriella smiled, "I'm happy today, because everything's alright,"

"And you not fight with daddy anymore?" the child asked, watching her mother curiously.

"Honey, we weren't fighting," Gabriella assured her, "I just wasn't feeling very good and I wasn't talking that well, but it's ok now,"

"ICKEN," Kirra announced, holding a tiny piece of it out to her father.

"Kirra eat it for daddy," he answered, smiling at her encouragingly, the expression widening as she stared at him before putting the food in her mouth without protesting as she normally would when he gave her instruction.

"I eat it too," Tamsin pointed out as she noticed her father's expression, "I good,"

"You're both little angels," he replied, "my little angels, as well as mommy,"

"Daddy," Tamsin sighed again, "Mommy's not little,"

"Not as little as you, is she?" he returned, "but she is an angel, do you know why?"

"No," Tamsin told him, "Daddy tell?"

"Well," he smiled, glancing up at Gabriella before looking back at his daughter, "Without mommy angel, I wouldn't have my two little angels, and you and Kirra sure don't get your angel status from me,"

"So mommy was an angel first," Tamsin queried, "and then me and Kirra were angels,"

"Yeah," he agreed, "Daddy's angels,"

"Can I be one of Daddy's angels too?" Evan joked, smirking at the scene between his sister's family, "I think I should be,"

"Inappropriate, Evan," Gabriella informed him in unison with Tamsin rolling her eyes and saying "No, because you're not and angel,"

"What am I then, Tam?" Evan quizzed his niece, settling his gaze on her as she glared back.

"You're a demon," Tamsin stated matter of factly, "Auntie Carly said so,"

"I'm perfect," he argued with his niece, ignoring the semi nervous glare he received from his sister, "in every way,"

"not, not, not," Tamsin disagreed, "he's not, is he mommy?"

"No," Gabriella assured her daughter, "When you're a bit bigger, there's quite a few things that your aunties and I could tell you about Uncle Evan,"

Tamsin stuck her tongue out at her uncle, laughing as he playfully sneered in retaliation.

"He's just upset," Tamsin concluded, "because I have something he not have when I bigger,"

"What's that?" Troy asked her, smiling curiously as she looked up at him.

"I have a brother and he not have one," Tamsin decided, looking to her mother questioningly, "I have brother soon mommy? I have sister so I need brother,"

Gabriella choked slightly at her daughter's words, feeling the eyes of everyone in the room, excluding her one year old daughter, on her.

After managing to regain her composure, she looked up to meet the smirking face of her husband, clearly enjoying the scene.

"Um.." she began, "some day, I guess, but daddy and I have to talk about it first,"

"Talk now," Tamsin suggested, "Kirra want a brother too,"

"We can't talk now," Troy put in, finally helping his wife, "we're eating dinner, and we have guests, it would be rude,"

He glanced at his younger daughter and wife, smiling at the latter's flushed face before glancing, in turn, at the other three people occupying the table, his mother was grinning broadly to herself, probably just excited at the prospect of another grandchild, his father was avoiding everyone's gaze, which unsettled him as he knew his father was the one Gabriella felt she had the most to prove to, Evan had his mouth covered with his hand, clearly trying his best to stifle a laugh as he watched Tamsin looking around at everyone.

"Talk soon," Tamsin demanded, seriousness etched on her face, "Sophie has a brother and I want one too,"

"She says that now," Evan commented, still smirking, "but when she has one, she'll be trying to get rid of him,"

"Someone's tired," Jack interrupted, changing the subject as he gestured to a yawning Kirra, the toddler also rubbing her eyes.

"She'll be out for the night soon then," Gabriella explained, standing up and lifting her out of her high chair, "you ready for bed sweetie?"

Kirra nodded tiredly as she rested her head on her mother's shoulder, "daddy,"

Gabriella looked over at her husband, smiling at the previously non-existent occurrence, "she wants you,"

He stood, walking around the table to them and taking Kirra from his wife's arms, still a little surprised that his younger daughter, whom was so attached to her mother, had asked for him.

"Come on then sleepyhead," he told her, "Tammy, come on, I'll read you both a story,"

Tamsin immediately jumped up, hugging her mother before running out of the room and upstairs, Troy following closely behind her.

"Daddy the in parent now?" Evan asked curiously, "never thought I'd see the day,"

"He's been spending more time with us," Gabriella explained, "Kirra's used to him being around more, like he was with Tammy when she was younger,"

"So that incident with that guy I'm gonna kill when I find him brought you closer together as a family?" Evan asked, "I guess that's normal and weird at the same time,"

Everyone went silent, the whole messy situation hadn't been spoken about all evening, and Gabriella had been hoping that she'd have at least an evening free of it being mentioned.

"You didn't need to say that," Jack finally spoke up, noting the silence of his wife and daughter-in-law, "we all want to kill him Evan, but that didn't need to be mentioned, not tonight,"

"Sorry, coach," Evan replied, calling the elder man 'coach' out of an old high school habit he had yet to let go of, "Sorry Gab, you didn't need me to say that,"

"It's ok," she tried, fighting away the memories as she stared intently at the family pictures on the wall of the dining room, "It gets easier to deal with, a little every day,"

She looked up to find Lucille watching her, nodding slightly as she watched the woman mouth, "talk to him about this,"

"Is this some kinda of woman code?" Evan questioned, noticing the interaction, "are you telepathically saying something about me?"

"Of course we are," Lucille smiled, turning to him, "all women are telepathic, it's how we always know what the men in our families are up to, we hear everything, and link to eachother,"

Evan narrowed his eyes in confusion, clearly unsure as to whether she was telling the truth or not as he searched for signs of deception in her face before evaluating, "Liar,"

"It was a joke, Evan," Jack explained, "one that you walked straight into,"

"Shouldn't you be getting back to campus?" Gabriella quizzed her brother, "you do have classes to be at tomorrow,"

"Subtle, sis," he commented sarcastically, "real subtle,"

"Bye," she replied in a sing song voice, "It's time to go home,"

"Why sing about it?" he asked, "it's pointless and too teen you,"

"Teen me was great," she answered, still pleased that she could annoy her brother, "I miss her,"

"Freaks," he muttered, rolling his eyes as he stood up, "I'm related to freaks,"

"We love you too Evan," she answered, "every last freakish one of us,"

He didn't reply as left the room, clearly heading towards the front door.

"Hey," Troy greeted as he re-entered the room, "The girls are both asleep, I didn't even get halfway through the story,"

"You got Tam to sleep at six fifteen?" Gabriella spoke, glancing at the clock "I'm impressed,"

"It's because i'm perfect," he claimed, "Brilliant at everything,"

"Then why can't you cook?" she questioned, curious as to his reply.

"I can," he smirked, sitting down next to her and looking her in the eye, "You have no taste,"

"Lies," she gasped, playfully mocking horror, "you're a liar,"

"You love it," he decided, "you love everything about me,"

"Nope," she refused, "You leave the cap off of the toothpaste, and it's annoying,"

"That's you," he pointed out truthfully, making her laugh and nod, "see, i'm even funny,"

"We're still here, you know," Jack pointed out, amused that the pair seemed oblivious to himself and his wife, "we can leave the room if you want us to,"

"Yes," Troy exclaimed quickly, in unison with his wife as she replied, "No,"

"Well, i'm confused," Lucille answered, also watching them interact, "Do we go or not?"

"No," Gabriella rushed before her husband got the chance to speak, "We should spend the evening together, all four of us,"

She smirked at the look on her husbands face, giggling as he mouthed "tease," to her before turning to face his parents.

"We should watch a movie," she suggested, "I know I haven't in a while,"

"Me neither," Lucille agreed, "It's one of those things you always mean to do but never get round to,"

"Lets start one then," Troy shot, lowering his mouth to his wife's ear as he whispered, "the sooner we start one, the sooner it finishes, and the sooner I get you to myself,"

"To talk?" she replied just as quietly, playing dumb, before adding seriously, "there is a few things I guess I should tell you,"

"You're ok?" he asked, automatically worried.

"I'm fine," she told him, "it's just, something that happened earlier that I should tell you about, so you know that it's happening,"

He nodded, still clearly unsure as to whether or not to make her talk to him at that moment, but decided to drop it as she jumped up, grabbing has hand and pulling him up with her as she announced, "we should go and pick a movie,"

He sighed, relieved at her happiness as she pulled him into the living room, his parents following them.

"You pick," she insisted, turning to him, pushing him slightly towards the selection of DVD's that were resting by the TV.

He picked up the first one without looking, showing it to her, "This ok?"

"You want to watch Dora the explorer?" she asked, smirking at him, "I didn't know you liked that,"

He pulled a face at her before picking up the next DVD and showing it to her, before looking at it himself, smiling as he realised that this one was a horror, one that would scare her into seeking comfort, though not giving her nightmare's.

"This one," he decided, not waiting for her views, "It's our best bet,"

She narrowed her eyes before shrugging and sitting in the sofa, watching his parents settle themselves in the other as he put the DVD in the player.

He sat down next to her after pressing play, allowing her to lean back on his chest, resting her head in the crook of his neck as he wrapped his arms around her in a protective manner.

**Lucille's**** POV**

"Look at them," I whispered to my husband, gesturing towards our son and daughter-in-law, "do you remember when we were like that?"

"Yes," smiled, frowning slightly as he looked over at them, "he really loves her,"

"He does," I assured him, "and the way you've been treating her, it doesn't help him,"

"He must hate me," Jack insisted, "he loves her and I kept trying to get in the way,"

"No he doesn't," I denied, "he loves you for caring so much, he just loves her more,"

We watched as our son softly planted a kiss on his wife's head as she buried her face in his chest because of the action on the television screen, whispering in her ear, clearly comforting her.

"He chose this move on purpose," I concluded quietly, "I can tell,"

"How?" Jack asked, glancing at them again before turning back to me for explanation.

"It's obvious," I commented, "He put this on because he knew some parts would scare her, he wanted to play the hero in comforting her,"

"You get that much?" Jack replied, "I thought it was just a movie,"

"It's more than that," I explained, "It's his way of both making sure she's near him, and getting back that little bit of trust he lost when Kieran took her, and it'll work, the more her protects her, the more she'll trust him again,"

"That really hit them hard," he sighed, "we should have been here, when they moved here we should have come here too, I know Albuquerque has been our home for so long, but staying nearer to them has to be more important, especially now,"

"You want to move up here?" I asked, considering it as he paused, "I guess it could help them a lot, but our lives are in Albuquerque, our jobs, our house,"

"Our family's here," he pointed out, "and as long as they need me here, i'm not leaving,"

"He needs his independence," I stated, "he'll think we don't trust him to look after his own family if we move too close and hang around all the time,"

"He's fine looking after them," Jack answered, "but in looking after them, I don't think he's looking after himself, and that's no good for him, or for them,"

"They'll be fine," I smiled faintly at his worry, "If he needs our help, he'll ask for it,"

"I hope you're right," he sighed, turning back to the movie as he whispered, "I think he's getting suspicious,"

I glanced sideways over at my son, noticing him watching us intently, immediately looking back at the TV screen before he noticed I was watching him.

**Troy's POV**

I woke with a start as I sensed the violent struggling coming from the side of me, turning quickly to see my wife tossing and turning in her sleep, kicking out as she violently struggled against some non existent force.

"no," she half shouted, still asleep, "don't hurt them please, no, don't hurt them,"

I sighed, running my hands through my hair before grabbing her shoulders, halting most of her movement, but not affecting her desperate cries.

"don't kill him," she was begging, "I'll come with you, leave them alone,"

"Not real," I started whispering, repeating it over and over in her ear, "not real, not real, not real,"

I continued, until she began unconsciously saying the words aloud herself.

Gently, I released her shoulders as her breathing relaxed a tiny bit, believing she was on her way back to flawless sleep, but almost as soon as I had relinquished my grip, she started kicking out again, tossing her head violently, telling me I had no choice but to wake her up.

I shook her arm, knowing that waking her up with a kiss as I used to would scare her more, considering the dreams she was having, repeatedly shaking her until eventually her eyes opened, fearful and vulnerable as she looked up at me, the childish innocence I hadn't seen in years in her eyes.

"It was just a dream," I assured her, sitting her up as I hugged her, "It wasn't real, i'm not going to let it be real,"

"Why did it come back?" she asked me, tears falling down her cheeks, "I don't want it to come back,"

"I know," I assured, "I don't want it to come back either, but i'm not going to let it come true, the police are going to find him, and he'll never bother you again,"

"You don't know that," she cried, "how can you know that?"

"I believe it because I have to," I explained, "I have to believe that they'll find him and you'll be safe,"

"But what if they don't?" she asked, clearly still scared.

"No buts," I insisted, "They'll find him, and if they don't, I will, he just better hope that it's them that get to him first,"

She went quiet, not even attempting to move away, knowing that I wouldn't let her, only speaking when I was about to break the silence.

"Evan mentioned him at dinner," she told me, knowing I'd understand everything, "when you were putting the girls to bed, he mentioned him and I froze, I remembered it all, I don't want to remember it,"

"I wish you didn't," I admitted, "If I'd have been here, he'd never have been able to get to you, he wouldn't have got near, I should have been here,"

"It's not your fault," she insisted, still shaking as she reached for the diamond necklace around her neck where it rested next to the 'T' that she always refused to take off, "You were being you,"

"I should have been here," I argued, "If I'd have been here, it wouldn't have happened,"

"You don't know that," she stated, her tone adamant that the discussion was over, making him notice that instead of comforting her, he'd been upsetting her further.

"I'm sorry," I sighed, "I just feel so guilty, if anything had happened to you, I'd never have forgiven myself,"

"Nothing did happen to me though," she pointed out, sinking further into my arms, "I'm ok,"

"You ready to go back to sleep?" I questioned as she yawned, feeling her nod I shifted our positions so we were both laying down, still refusing to let go of her.

"We're going to be ok, you know," I smiled, "we have eachother, that's all we need,"

* * *

**Okies, i'm ending it there, mainly because it's a cool place, and I've already started the next chapter, because i'm insane.**

**It may become harder for me to write now, because i'm starting sixth form at school tomorrow, which can be pretty hectic.**

**Review people, or this already started chapter could remain unseen for a while, also, check out the youtube, the link actually is in the profile.**


	46. News

**Fastest update as it got the most reviews (which shocked me), i've been working on a new oneshot for a couple of months now, that i'm hoping to finish sometime in the next few days, but no promises.**

* * *

**No one's POV**

"MOMMY," Tamsin shouted fearfully as yet another camera went off in her parent's faces, running behind her mother.

"That's it," Troy muttered to his wife before looking up, "NO MORE PICTURES,"

He looked down at Kirra, whom was soundly asleep in the stroller, and wondered how she managed to sleep through all the commotion.

He sighed as a few more flashes went off, looking up threateningly as most of the men began to walk away, probably happy that they now had a story.

"It's ok," Gabriella whispered, trying to calm him down, "no one got hurt,"

"It's not alright," he insisted, "how can you be so calm? They scared our daughter,"

"Worse things have happened," she stated, looking downwards at the ground.

"It's just," he began, pausing before deciding to continue, "I don't want them near you,"

"I know," she sighed, "but it's not as if they can even print the pictures without our consent, not with the girls in them,"

"That won't stop them," he insisted, watching her carefully, "they're parasites,"

"What do you expect?" she asked, " Other than the park on my birthday, I haven't been out in public since... well, you know, and now I am, they're making some huge story out of it, probably going to shock the world with the news that I can still walk out the front door without completely breaking down,"

He studied the faint smile on her face, assuring him that her comment had been a joke, although he still wasn't sure, she'd lie to him if she thought it'd make him feel better, and he couldn't force her to tell the truth about everything, she believed that little white lies were sometimes necessary, and it was the small things like that belief that made her who she was, he didn't want to change that because he was worried.

He smiled in reply, nodding as he thought back to the conversation he'd had with his mother earlier in the morning before they had headed out, he wasn't the only one worried about his wife's current state.

_Flashback_

"_Troy," he heard his mother address him, "we have to talk,"_

"_What about mom?" he questioned, genuinely curious, "I didn't thank you for getting her to open up did I, I should have, so, thanks,"_

"_It's not that," she answered quietly, glancing out into the hallway where her daughter-in-law was preparing her children for a day out, "I heard her, during the night, the crying, how scared she was,"_

"_Mom, she's ok," Troy claimed, "we're dealing with it,"_

"_You can't deal with all of this on your own," she insisted, turning back to her son, watching him closely, "you can't be everywhere, and she's scared, so scared, she needs more than just you,"_

"_She doesn't need to see a doctor mom," he defended, "I can look after her, she doesn't need a shrink,"_

"_I wasn't thinking of anything like that," Lucille admitted, "I was thinking, maybe she just needs her mom, it can't be easy for her, after everything that's happened, and her parents just going like that,"_

"_You think I should get her to spend time with her mom?" he asked, seriously considering it, "Gabs hasn't said anything, she'd say if it was what she wanted,"_

"_Of course she hasn't," Lucille answered, "she doesn't want to feel like she's putting you out, but I think that's what she needs, her mom, the one person she's known is safe since she was a child,"_

"_I can't get the time off to take her there," he sighed, "and i'm not letting her go alone,"_

"_Get her mom here then," she insisted, "only you can make this decision for her, think about it, do what you think is right for her, for your family,"_

_End Flashback_

He'd made his mind up in the two hours since that conversation, he was going to get his mother to distract her that night, so that he could call her mother to ask what she thinks is best for the situation, he wasn't going to make the woman come back if she didn't think it was the right thing to do.

"So..." his wife began, "where are we going for lunch?"

"MCDONALDS," Tamsin exclaimed, "I like it daddy,"

"Not today," he told his daughter, "we're going to the park today, which would be why I snuck the picnic basket into the car earlier, and no, I didn't make it, my mom did,"

"So the food's edible," Gabriella smirked, "that's a relief, we're not all going to die of food poisoning,"

"Hey," he pouted, "All food I make is edible,"

"Really?" she smirked, "I wouldn't even let the dogs eat it,"

"You know what?" He asked, "If you keep being this horrible, I might have to stop talking to you,"

"NO," Tamsin refused, pulling on her dad's hand, causing both of her parents to look at her as she fixed him with her best glare, "You have to talk to mommy about my brother, you promised daddy"

"Mommy and I did talk about that," he claimed, picking her up as they continued to walk, Kirra sound asleep in her stroller, "But we need to talk more because it's a very big decision,"

"Then you stop be silly and talk now," she insisted, "you do talk NOW, daddy,"

"Not now, Tammy," Gabriella sighed, pausing as her daughter turned to her, "We'll talk when we get home, ok?"

"Promise?" Tamsin questioned, her wide eyes surveying her mother in curiosity.

"Of course," Gabriella smiled reassuringly, "I promise, daddy and I will talk tonight,"

"We may even get started tonight," Troy suggested, smirking at his wife, "It takes a while sometimes, you know,"

"Keep dreaming," came his wife's response, "all I have planned for tonight is sleep, besides, your parents will be there,"

"They won't mind," he smirked, before noting his confused daughter's face, "we're discussing it, Tammy,"

"Silly daddy," Tamsin sighed, "you're a silly daddy,"

"He is, isn't he," Gabriella agreed, smiling at the four year old, "very silly,"

"Why do you two always gang up on me?" Troy asked, "This isn't fair, i'm outnumbered, you call me silly because you don't understand me,"

"Daddy, shhh," Tamsin quietened him, "Mommy he's being silly again,"

"You know what the problem is," he continued, "I've been way too soft with you, I need to toughen up, I admit, it's my fault, I shouldn't let you get away with half of what you do, but that's going to change, starting now, both of you, you're grounded,"

"Honey, we're already out," Gabriella answered, "you're not that good at grounding,"

"You're grounded from when we get home," he changed his decision slightly, "no leaving the house unless I say so,"

"You have to stay home too then," his wife decided, "you're gonna have to make sure we stay,"

"My parents are there,"he reminded her, realising the real reason she said the words as her face fell, "but I can't trust them, they're also too soft, I have to stay home and teach them to be tough, while making sure you two stick to the conditions of your punishment,"

"What about Kirra, daddy?" Tamsin questioned, immediately staring at him to prompt a response, "is Kirra grounded too?"

"No, Kirra's not grounded," he explained, glancing down at his younger daughter as she slept, "she hasn't been ganging up on me,"

"She will," Tamsin decided, "when she bigger daddy, she say you silly too, because you are silly daddy,"

"Kirra wouldn't do that," he claimed, "she's a very good girl, not like you and mommy,"

"She will," Tamsin insisted, "I tell her to, so she will daddy, I sure. Daddy, I hungry,"

"We're going to get the picnic basket now," he explained, tightening his grip as he spotted the camera's of a group of people waiting a short way down the street, "Then we're going to walk to the park and have some lunch, we're not parked far from the park, princess,"

"Daddy?" Tamsin asked curiously, "What's Mommy's name?"

"You know mommy's name, Tammy," he smiled, "I don't call her mommy, I use her name,"

"Nooo, daddy," Tamsin complained, "I princess, Kirra sweetie, what mommy's name?"

"oh," he exclaimed, understanding what she meant, "Mommy's angel,"

"Why?" Tamsin asked, glancing over at Gabriella before turning back to him, the curiosity in her eyes making them both smile as she interrogated her father, "why daddy?"

"I used to call mommy angel when we were in school," he tried telling her, "and it stuck, remember Tammy, mommy was my first angel, and you and Kirra are my little angels,"

Tamsin nodded, looking ahead and pointing excitedly at the car as soon as it came into sight, the thought of food clearly encouraging her hyperactivity.

**Gabriella's POV**

I smiled as I watched the natural interactions between my husband and elder daughter, her giggling almost becoming infectious as he spun her round in his arms, much to the delight of both her, and her sister, whom was laughing in my lap as she watched them.

"Be careful," I called as Tamsin slipped a little out of his grip, only for him correct her position for her own safety.

After a few minutes, he stopped spinning, setting her down on the grass as he led her over to us and sat down, watching both me and the girls simultaneously as he did so.

"What?" I finally asked, somewhat relieved that we were closer together as yet another camera flash went off from somewhere near us and both girls turned in the direction it came from, showing no sign of fear.

"Am I not allowed to watch you now?" Troy smirked, not moving his gaze off of my face as he unconsciously moved Tamsin in front of him to improve his vision of her, "I like to watch you, reminds me of how lucky I am,"

"What will it take to get you to remember birthdays?" I questioned, imitating his smirk, "they're quite important, you know,"

"I remember birthdays," he claimed, "I do only have three to remember, yours and the girls, other than those, birthdays are pointless,"

"So, what you're saying is, only we should have birthdays?" I quizzed, gesturing towards myself and our daughters, "No one else is important enough to have one?"

"Kind of," he decided, "everyone is important enough to have them, but not everyone's birthday is important enough for me to remember, see, what you're forgetting is that I also have two anniversary's to remember as well as the birthdays, that gives me enough to think about,"

I smiled at the mention of the two anniversary's, knowing immediately that as well as our wedding anniversary, he also meant the anniversary of the day he asked me out for the first time, even though he really didn't, which he always claimed was the best day of his life, other than our wedding and the births of our daughters.

_Flashback (still G POV)_

"_I can't do this," I heard him mutter, immediately smiling to myself at my friends worked up state "wait, I can, I can do this, it'll turn out fine, but what if it doesn't, I have to do this, no, I can't,"_

"_What can't you do?" I finally made my presence known, giggling as he jumped "Tie your shoelaces?"_

"_You're gonna be the death of me," he commented after getting over the initial shock of the surprise, "It's, um, nothing, not for you to worry about,"_

"_Tell me," I pouted, "Please, I promise not to tell anyone, besides, I already know that you can't tie your shoelaces,"_

"_This isn't about shoelaces," he stated, before realising what I said and defending himself, "and I can tie them,"_

"_Then what's this big thing you can't do?" I questioned, staring at him expectantly, "I'll follow you around all day until you tell me,"_

"_I can't tell you this," he tried, "eventually, I will, but not now,"_

"_Why not?" I quizzed, "who does it involve?"_

"_Well, um," he began, "um, I guess I could, but..."_

"_DUDE," I heard Chad shout from behind me, "JUST ASK HER OUT ALREADY, WE'RE ALL GETTING OLD WAITING,"_

"_Damn it, Chad," Troy cursed as I gasped in surprise, something that he seemed to notice as he continued, "Well, um, I guess, kind of, what he said, but you don't have to, I won't take offence or anything, it's just, I like you, a lot, as more than a friend, and I know the friend thing is working, but maybe the dating, serious relationship kinda thing could work too..."_

"_Troy," I giggled at his ramble, smiling in amusement as he continued over my voice, only stopping when I pressed a finger to his lips, "You talk, way too much,"_

"_Well, um..." he began, about to start rambling again, quietening as soon as I cut him off this time._

"_I'd love to," I replied, "what Chad said,"_

"_Really?" he asked unsurely, "seriously?"_

"_Yes, Troy, really," I assured him, trying not to let it show that I was screaming on the inside._

"_Great," he sighed, clearly with relief, "so, um, you busy Saturday night?"_

"_Depends," I responded, "Haven't got anything planned as of now, but you never know,"_

"_Keep it free," he told me, "You're gonna be busy that night,"_

_End flashback_

"Daddy, I want an ice cream," Tamsin ordered, looking up at him intently, "chocate,"

"Maybe in a little while, Tammy," he replied, placing a hand on my shoulder, "you ok? You sort of just zoned out there for a sec,"

"I'm good," I insisted, "I was just thinking, good memories, not bad for once,"

"That's good," he smiled, moving his hand to caress my cheek, bringing his hand sharply back to himself as he heard a familiar voice call to us.

"Hey," Taylor greeted, sitting down next to me, her husband not far behind, "I thought you would have called last night,"

I looked up, giving her a small smile before turning to my eldest daughter, whom was now trying desperately to hide behind her father.

"We were busy," Troy responded for me, not even looking up at her, "Tamsin was upset most of the night, took me a while to get her to tell us why,"

He chose this point to look up, glaring directly at Chad.

"What the hell gives you the right to yell at my kids?" he asked, keeping his voice at a calm and low level so as not to scare the children.

"I didn't mean to shout at her," Chad defended, "I was just angry, not at her though, I shouldn't have I know,"

"You still did," Troy pointed out, "And then you tried to get her to hide it from us,"

"Actually," Taylor put in, "That was Sophie, she was trying to protect us,"

"Exactly," he exclaimed, "Sophie was trying to protect YOU, if you hadn't have yelled at Tamsin in the first place, Sophie would never of had to protect you,"

"Daddy, I want to go home," Tamsin decided, still clinging to him in fear, "Daddy, home,"

"Ok, princess," he agreed, standing up as he scooped her up in his arms, gesturing with his fee hand for me to follow him.

I stood up slowly, Kirra still in my arms as my husband picked up the picnic basket and blanket from the ground.

"Home time, sweetie," I smiled at my younger daughter, the frown on her face telling me that she had sensed the tension, "We're going to see Grandma and Grandad at home,"

Kirra smiled as the four of us walked towards the car, our 'friends' and their children smartly choosing to stay behind, allowing my husband time to cool off.

**Lucille's POV**

"Hey," I greeted as my sons family walked through the door of their home, "You get a new dishwasher,"

"Ordered," Troy answered my questioned as he put Kirra down, "should be here in a few days,"

"Is everything ok?" I immediately asked him, sensing a slight anger as he sat down and ran his hands through his hair.

I picked up my younger granddaughter as she came to me, looking up at my daughter-in-law to see her biting her lip, clearly unsure as to what she should say.

"Daddy's mad at Uncle Chad," Tamsin stated from her mother's side, also walking over to me, settling herself on the floor at my feet.

"Daddy shouldn't be worrying about Uncle Chad," I commented, knowing that he would pick up on my tone, the last thing his wife and daughters needed was for him to be caught up in some friendship feud, they both needed their friends to help them through everything that had happened recently, one slip up shouldn't signal the end of a previously lifelong friendship.

He glanced up at me as I said it, clearly not appreciating what I'd said.

"Where's dad?" He finally spoke up, before glancing at his wife as she sat beside him.

"Setting up the girls swing set," I told them, "I thought you two would have had that done by now,"

"We've been busy," he excused, placing a hand on Gabriella's knee in what was meant to be a comforting gesture, "what with everything that's happened,"

I nodded, aware that neither of them were looking at me.

After a few minutes of silence, the sound of the doorbell made me sigh in relief as I stood up, "I'll get it,"

I left the room quickly, opening the front door in a hurry, but momentarily shocked as I saw the police officer standing at the other side of it.

"Yes?" I questioned, looking the uniformed man up and down as he also took in my appearance, "can I help you?"

"I'm looking for Gabriella Bolton," he informed me, his tone emphasising seriousness, "Could you tell me where I may find her?"

"She's here," I told him, "Look, i'm her mother-in-law, and she's not taking all of this so well, so, can you please just tell me or her husband,"

"I think she'll want to know this, ma'am," he answered my question, "We have important information regarding Kieran Sanchez,"

* * *

**Yes, I am being evil and leaving it there, because I can, plus, it's like, a legendary place.**

* * *

**Quicker you review, quicker the update, so press that little button at the bottom of the screen.**


	47. Regretful

**No ramble, because i'm putting this up at two in the morning, and have no pre planned ramble. I'm way too tired to write now and have just watched what has got to be the biggest charity event of the year in the UK, so, i'm just going to let you read today.**

**Lucille's POV (cos it's where I left off)**

"Have you found him?" I exclaimed, looking back in the house to see my son head towards me.

"Mom?" he questioned, before looking at the officer still standing outside the door, "DI Mason? What's happened?"

"It's really best that I speak to your wife about this," the man answered, looking past us and into the house, "is she here?"

"Yes," we both responded simultaneously, before I went quiet to let my son continue, "I don't think seeing her is a good idea, she's not doing well, she has these nightmares, I don't want her reminded of it when she's finally managed to forget about it for a few hours,"

"I understand," DI Mason admitted, "but she's going to want to hear this,"

Frowning slightly I watched as Troy stepped back from the door, before following his lead and letting the detective pass before the three of us made our way back to Gabriella and the girls.

I watched as my son went straight to his wife's side, clearly assuming that it was bad news and he'd be needed near her for comfort.

"Tammy," I began, smiling down at my elder granddaughter as she watched DI Mason curiously, "how about you, me and Kirra go and play on the swings in the garden,"

The four-year-old stood up, still watching him as she cautiously came towards me as I picked Kirra up from the floor.

"What if he takes mommy?" she whispered fearfully as she reached me, "I don't want him to take mommy,"

"He's not going to take mommy anywhere," Troy assured her, smiling to emphasise his words as she looked at him, "and if he does, daddy will go with her and bring her home,"

Tamsin looked over at DI Mason, scowling slightly as the detective chuckled before assuring her himself, "mommy's staying right here,"

She looked at her mother unsurely, noticing the smile on her face as she nodded.

"Come on," I encouraged as I took her hand and led her out of the room, "You haven't played on the swings for a while,"

**No One's POV**

"So," Troy began once his mother and daughters had left the room, "What's this about? You find him?"

"Kieran Sanchez has not yet been found," DI Mason admitted, focusing his attention on the news he had come to bring them, "his accomplice gave himself up to police early this morning, a man by the name of Darren Bryce,"

Gabriella gasped, almost choking as she repeated the name, "Darren Bryce?"

"Do you know him?" Both men questioned simultaneously, both looking over at her.

"I went to school with him," Gabriella elaborated, clearly still shocked, "Middle school, he was one of Katelyn's friends, he never so much as spoke to me or to Kieran,"

"Criminal charges are being processed as we speak," Mason confirmed, "he's unlikely to be granted bail,"

"Ok," Gabriella acknowledged quietly, feeling her husband place a comforting arm around her as he pulled her closer to him, "What'll happen to him? I know, but I need to hear you say it,"

"He'll likely be convicted," Mason responded, "but giving himself up looks good for him, he's also helping with our enquiries, and I need to go over a few things with you,"

"Like what?" Troy asked quickly, watching as his wife nodded slowly.

"Firstly," Mason began, focusing on Gabriella, "I need to check how you're doing,"

"I'm fine," she insisted, "for the most part, everyone's been great,"

"I can see you've got a lot of support," Mason smiled slightly, "from both family and friends,"

"I wouldn't exactly call my dad support," Troy interrupted, knowing whom the detective was referring to, "he hasn't exactly been that great in the past,"

"He's never hurt me," Gabriella rushed in explanation of her husbands words, "we've just, never exactly got on,"

"My dad didn't like that she distracted me from basketball when we were still in school," Troy continued for her, "personally I didn't see the problem,"

"Families can be difficult," Mason agreed, "Nobody gets on with everyone,"

"Exactly," Troy responded, becoming tired of the small talk, "so, what are these other things that you need to go over?"

"Of course" Mason continued, "Has there been any major problems that have arisen as a result of the incident?"

He watched as the young woman bit her lip, her husband refusing to make eye contact with anyone.

"It's just..." Gabriella began, before changing her mind and shaking her head.

"I'd recommend that you tell me about any problems," The officer tried persuading, "Any effects of what Kieran Sanchez has done needs to be added to his file, the jurors need the whole picture when the case goes to trial, including these nightmares your husband mentioned,"

"It's only a few nightmares," she tried playing it down, "It's not that major,"

"I can take care of it," Troy added defensively, "besides, you have to find him before you can even set a date for the trial,"

"I'll need you to go through the nightmares with me at some point," The detective confirmed, "but it's late right now, and you most likely want to get your children to bed, so I'll just ask one more question for now." Gabriella nodded, prompting him to continue, "Has Mr Sanchez tried to contact you in any way since you received the letter three days ago?"

"Letter?" Troy questioned, looking to his wife for answers.

She didn't look at him, instead answering the Detective's question, "No, nothing since, do you think he'll try?"

"Considering the contents of the letter," Mason explained, glancing between the pair, "We believe that he's very likely to try and contact you again, it's not likely that he'll call, it poses a bigger risk to him, he doesn't want us to trace him, so we need you to be on the lookout, he may try and approach you in the street, talk to you that way, we'd recommend that you don't go out alone, we don't know how much of a threat he still is, the letter seems sincere but the smartest of criminals are experts in manipulation,"

Gabriella was aware of her husbands eyes still burning into the side of her head, he'd be angry that she hadn't told him about receiving the letter, but it had been the day his parents arrived, she hadn't had the chance to tell him, having given it to the police as soon as she realised whom had sent it.

"I guess I can try and stay in," she sighed, still refusing to look at her husband.

DI Mason nodded, sensing that the pair had something to talk about, "I'll see myself out,"

He stood up, nodding again before leaving the room, hastily making his way to the front door.

"There was a letter?" Troy asked, perhaps a little to sharply as he heard the front door close.

Gabriella nodded, shifting a little so she wasn't as close to him.

"And you didn't tell me?" he continued, his tone not changing, despite the fact he could sense her slight fear.

"No," she muttered under her breath, before finally looking up at him, "but..."

"Were you ever going to tell me?" he asked, his eyes telling her he was furious, causing her to back up a little more, "of were you just going to hide it?"

She didn't answer, just stood up and walked towards the back door, "i'm going to get the girls, it's way past their bedtime,"

He frowned as he heard her call to their daughters, heard the sound of their footsteps as she herded them upstairs and to their rooms.

"Are you ok?" he suddenly heard his mother ask him, and looked up to see both of his parents entering the room, "good or bad news?"

"Did you know?" he asked them angrily, "did you know he'd contacted her? Did she tell you about this letter?"

"What letter?" Lucille asked warily, "Troy?"

"He sent her a letter mom, Kieran sent her a letter," he explained, still desperately trying to control his anger, "she didn't tell me about it,"

"Maybe she was just scared of how you'd react," his mother reasoned, moving cautiously towards him, her husband following her, "she knows you'd do anything to protect her, maybe she just didn't want you to do something that could get you in trouble, or something you'd end up regretting,"

"I had a right to know," Troy claimed, "she should have told me, but it's like she doesn't think i'm important enough to be told these things,"

"You know that's not true," he heard his mother fight back as she sat next to him, "she loves you, which, believe it or not, is probably one of the reasons she didn't tell you, she didn't want to worry you,"

"I can't protect her if she's keeping things from me," he fought back defensively, realising his father had not commented, but was just watching the interactions, "I can't deal with these secrets, secrets she shouldn't be keeping, doesn't she trust me?"

"Yesterday," Lucille stated, noting the confusion in his eyes before continuing, "she was doubting that you loved her, she does trust you, she doesn't trust herself, have you ever thought that something inside her was telling her that if she told you about this letter, then you wouldn't trust her either?"

"That's not true, and you know it," he shot back, trying to dismiss the suggestion, "you know that I trust her,"

"She doesn't," Lucille pointed out, "well, it doesn't look like she knows,"

"You know what?" he decided, the anger still clear in his voice, "All of this is irrelevant, it doesn't change the fact that she hid something important from me, she knows how I feel about all this, I need her to tell me these things instead of acting like a child, i'm sick of worrying mom, i'm sick of her acting like everything is ok, that what happened was normal, she's acting like she wants it to happen again,"

"You think I wanted this?" A small voice questioned from the top of the stairs, making the three people look up, "you think I asked for this?"

"Gab," he whispered to her, the pain that was evident in her eyes jolting him into action, "never, angel, never,"

His parents watched as he began to approach her, walking towards her up the steps as she began backing away, leading them both out of his parents sight.

"Don't touch me," she snapped as he reached for her, beginning to move away from him faster.

"ok, ok," he relented, "you need to calm down, calm down so we can talk about this,"

She hesitated for a second, and he took the opportunity to reach out to her again.

"Stay away from me," she demanded, turning on her heel quickly, rushing into the bathroom and locking the door behind her.

**Gabriella's POV**

"Angel, come out," he was calling through the door pretty much as soon as I'd locked it, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean any of it, I was just angry and worried, you know I say stupid things when i'm worried, come out, I'll make it up to you, I promise,"

I frowned, wiping the tears out of my eyes, deep down I knew that he didn't mean any of it, but that didn't change the fact that he'd said it, that it hurt, I knew he thought that it was him I was trying to stay away from, but I just didn't want the girls to see me cry, Tamsin had only ever seen it once before, and Kirra had never seen it.

"Sweetie, are you ok?" Lucille was suddenly questioning through the door, something I wasn't surprised by, the hallway outside the door had gone quiet for a few seconds, clearly when my husband had gone to enlist his mother's help.

"I'm fine," I responded, wiping my eyes again as I noted that I'd managed to calm myself down.

"Can you come out?" she asked, her concern obvious.

I sighed, knowing that I'd have to leave the room eventually, and the longer I stayed in the room, the harder it would be to leave, yet I still checked the mirror again, my eyes were still puffy, but there wasn't much I could do about that.

I responded to her question by opening the door slightly, letting her meet my gaze, he was standing next to her, which didn't really surprise me. Slowly she reached out, pushing the door open fully, immediately making me feel vulnerable as my husband quickly reached out, pulling me as close as possible before I had the chance to react.

I didn't respond to his tight hug, purposely flinched as he softly kissed my forehead while thanking his mother.

"Please," he begged as his mother left, continuing to make small loving gestures while I struggled against him, "i'm sorry,"

I stopped struggling as I sensed his guilt, but the remaining evident anger and hurt still stopped me from reciprocating the tight embrace he still held me in.

"Mommy," we both looked down at the voice to meet our older daughter's eyes as she watched us warily, "not cry, mommy,"

"I'm not crying," I insisted, forcing a smile as she looked at me disbelievingly, "I'm ok Tammy,"

Tamsin watched as both disbelievingly before yawning, giving her no alternative but to accept my words as I spoke again, "let's get you back to bed,"

"Daddy come too?" she quizzed, seeking assurance that we really were ok.

My husband's eyes were back on me as his grip tightened slightly and he waited for me to respond to our daughter's question.

"Yeah," I agreed, still watching her as I walked out of my husbands embrace and took my daughters hand, feeling Troy take hold of my other hand as we walked into her room.

As she climbed into bed she looked up at us again, watching our interactions before seemingly accepting that nothing was wrong and crawling under the covers, "Goodnight mommy, goodnight daddy,"

"Night princess," Troy and I responded in unison, both of us surprised by the occurance.

We slowly left the room, my hand no longer in his grip, his arm having sneaked around my waist at some point while we were in the room.

I yawned as I continued trying to ignore him, his actions making it difficult.

"Looks like it's your bedtime too," he suggested, not waiting for a response as he changed direction slightly, letting go of me momentarily as I walked into the room.

"I just need to go talk to my parents for a sec," he explained, only continuing when I finally looked him in the eye, "go to sleep, I'll be back in a few minutes, we'll talk about this tomorrow, I promise,"

I watched as his figure disappeared from the doorway, before doing what I was told and getting ready for bed, falling into a slumber I wasn't sure how long would last.

* * *

**This chapter was going to be longer, but I figured that you've been waiting long enough, and seeing as that's an alrightish place to leave it, I didn't need to make you wait longer. I'm hoping to move onto the final few chapters of Getting Through now, which, to be honest, I haven't actually thought about yet. **

**Anyways, Review, the more I get the sooner I try and update.**

* * *


	48. Morning

**I know this is kinda short, but I didn't realise until yesterday that today is a year from the day I started this story (sorry it's taking me so long, lol), and I couldn't not update, so I had to rush forward the chapter using the plans I had in my head.**

* * *

**Gabriella's POV**

I smiled lightly as I opened my eyes, my husband's tight, protective embrace making me feel safe, despite the events of the previous night.

I twisted around in his arms in order to face him, surprised when I met his open eyes.

"How long have you been awake?" I whispered, considering the fact that it was still early morning.

"I'm not tired," he claimed, although the dark circles around his eyes told me different, "besides, I like to watch you sleep,"

"I'm not mad," I informed him, knowing that it was his worry that I was still angry that was keeping him awake, "you were right, I should have told you,"

"I went too far," he insisted, refusing to let me take any of the blame, "I shouldn't have said that stuff, it was wrong and unfair, i'm sorry about that,"

"You've already apologised," I pointed out, "you apologise too much,"

"I'm an idiot too much," he stated, "and it always seems to be you I hurt,"

"No it's not," I refuted, trying to convince him, "there are more good times than bad times, and even though sometimes you upset me, I know it's not intentional and you always spend weeks fussing after even though you don't have too,"

"How can you be so forgiving?" he questioned her, pulling her closer to him as much as a could, "you're too forgiving most of the time, you know that?"

"All I need to know to forgive you is that you love me, that you didn't really mean anything that you said," I smiled slightly, "you tell me the first one as much as you can, and you never mean it when you say that kind of stuff, asking for more would be unfair when I don't want anymore,"

"I love you so much," he promised, kissing me lightly on the forehead, "Never forget that,"

"I won't," I responded, the closeness making me feel more comfortable, "and even if I did, I'd have you here to remind me,"

"True," he agreed, before mocking a serious face and continuing, "Now you will sleep, as people do in the early hours of the morning, especially when they have children that will so clearly wake them up at the earliest moment possible."

I nodded in agreement, closing my eyes without moving from his embrace, "you have to sleep too though,"

"If you insist," he sighed playfully, "with one eye open of course, need to keep an eye on you,"

"You better not," I answered, my eyes still closed, "that would be creepy,"

"Go to sleep," he quietened seriously, "it's good for your health, like not smoking and drinking,"

"I don't smoke, or drink," I spoke, "well, I don't drink much, only at Christmas, and on Anniversary's, and when there's really good news, depending on the news, but I never smoke."

"Hun," he interrupted, kissing me lightly again, "you're rambling, go to sleep,"

I smiled again, following his orders as I felt him shift position slightly so he too could get what sleep would be possible before the girls woke up, full of the many morning demands that made life so sweet.

**Lucille's POV**

"Where's Mommy?" Tamsin yawned, padding into the kitchen, a slight, soft sound coming from her slippers on the kitchen's floor.

"She's still sleeping, princess," I explained, "you hungry?"

She nodded, "where's Daddy?"

"He's still sleeping too," I elaborated, smiling as she looked up at me, "We don't have to wake them do we? Me, you Kirra and Grandad can all have breakfast quietly so mommy and daddy can sleep,"

"Are they sick?" She questioned, a hint of childlike worry in her voice, "Daddy always makes mommy stay in bed when she's sick, I don't want mommy and daddy to be sick,"

"No, they're not sick," I assured her, "Mommy's and Daddy's just get tired sometimes and they need a little more sleep,"

Telling her what was obvious to me, that her parents were still asleep now as the fight they had last night stopped them from sleeping for a few hours, would achieve nothing, upsetting her wasn't a good idea, she'd always been a sensitive child.

Tamsin was watching me as I made breakfast, a sudden smile gracing her face.

"What?" I asked, questioning her happy mood.

"Mommy does that," she exclaimed excitedly, pointing at the egg I was currently cracking, "and when daddy tries, he gets all the shell in the egg and then mommy laughs and says that you can't eat the shell and daddy is silly,"

I copied her smile as she told me the fact that clearly meant so much to her, which would be to others, just something that happened.

"Doesn't daddy have to work today?" Tamsin suddenly piped up again, still watching me carefully, her questioning eyes cast towards my face.

"I don't think so, I should check though, shouldn't I," I responded, "Do you know when daddy works?"

"Everyday," Tamsin claimed glumly, "even on Sunday's, but not on Wednesdays, I think, but sometime he work on Wednesday and sometime he not,"

Her words told me that I wasn't going to get sense out of her, although she tried, she was still too young to distinguish which days he was training or playing, and which days he wasn't.

"I'll get Grandad to check, ok?" I smiled, watching her out of the corner of my eye as she turned back to the food.

"How long till food?" she questioned, "me take some to mommy and daddy because they be hungry?"

"Maybe later," I agreed, proud of the care she showed for her parents at her young age, "let's let them sleep for a while longer though,"

"Ok," she agreed, "Kirra up?"

"She's with Grandad in the dining room," I informed her, " Do you want to go in there with them?"

Tamsin nodded, running out of the kitchen and towards the room.

I continued to make breakfast, surprised at Tamsin's morning enthusiasm, It hadn't been a quality she possessed when she'd stayed with us almost two years ago, on the night her sister was born.

**Troy's POV**

I woke up to a light tugging on my arm, and opened my eyes to see my daughters both standing next to the bed, Tamsin holding a tray carefully with both hands.

"I not drop it, daddy," she exclaimed, as Kirra announced "Bekast," excitedly.

"That's great," I smiled at them, sitting up and taking the tray from Tamsin, afraid that she would, in fact, drop it, "Is this all for me?"

"And mommy too, silly," Tamsin giggled, widening her eyes in an attempt to roll them, "Mommy have to wake up, I wake her up?"

I turned to look at the sleeping form of my wife, still unsure whether or not I wanted her disturbed, even if it was our daughter.

I sighed, knowing what I had to say, "Ok, ok, but be good little girls and don't shout,"

"Daddddyyyy," Kirra whined from the floor next to me, pulling my attention off of Tamsin as she attempted to wake her mother, "Up,"

She reached up for me, began giggling as I picked her up, carefully lifting her over the tray and onto the bed, noticing for the first time that she was dressed.

"Wake up mommy," Tamsin was requesting, her hand on Gabriella's arm as she shook her lightly, "mommy,"

I smiled encouragingly at her as I noticed that my wife's breathing has changed, she was awake, she was just waiting until Tamsin figured it out.

"Mommy," she repeated, "you have to wake up or I'll make daddy wake you up,"

"I am awake, Tammy," Gabriella revealed, "are you awake?"

"Silly mommy," Tamsin evaluated, "I awake, and Kirra awake, and daddy awake,"

"That's good," my wife decided, her hand reaching out and brushing our older daughter's cheek, "you look nice,"

"Grandma helped me, and Kirra too," Tamsin beamed, "Me and Kirra go out with Grandma and Grandad today?"

"If you really want to," Gabriella answered, still not aware that I was awake, or that Kirra was directly behind her, "where are you going?"

"Grandma says, surprise," Tamsin explained, "Daddy have your breakfast and his breakfast, and I carry it in, and Grandma make it,"

Gabriella turned slowly, sitting up as she turned to me, unconsciously pulling Kirra onto her lap as soon as she saw her.

"You're awake," she smiled, running her fingers through the almost two-year-old's hair.

"We have two perfectly good alarm clocks," I responded, happiness surging through me as her smile grew and Tamsin's eyes narrowed.

"I wake you up, daddy," she insisted, "not clock,"

"You did, didn't you princess,"I agreed with her, before finally looking towards the door as I noticed a figure, unsurprised to see my mother standing there."

"I could hardly let her carry the tray up here alone, could I," she said, smiling as she watched Tamsin look at her.

"Are you sure you're ok to take them for the day?" Gabriella questioned her nervously, "if there's something you'd rather do..."

"You, relax," Mom insisted, "it's fine, I want to take them, you two need the rest, and Jack and I need the quality time before we head back home,"

"Aren't you going to stay for Kirra's birthday?" I quizzed, knowing I was mirroring my wife's thoughts, "you're welcome to,"

"We wouldn't miss it for the world," Mom replied, looking at my younger daughter, whom had now crawled out of her mother's lap and was heading towards the end of the bed, "but I don't know how long we can really stay after that."

"Kirra," I sighed, smiling, moving the tray off of my lap quickly before grabbing her before she fell off of the end and placing her back next to her mother, tickling her as soon as she was settled, "you're gonna get yourself hurt, sweetie,"

"No," she denied, giggling hysterically at the tickling as both Gabriella and Tamsin laughed beside us.

"Stop," Kirra kicked out, a sure sign that she was getting annoyed with something.

I immediately stopped tickling her, looking into her eyes as she watched me, clearly unamused, "Can you not leave the soccer till you're older, or even better, switch to basketball,"

She frowned, clearly not understanding my words before turning to her mother.

"Silly," she exclaimed, grinning as Gabriella nodded proudly.

"I told you daddy," Tamsin cheered triumphantly, "Kirra call you silly and I say she would,"

"And who taught her that word, Tammy?" I questioned, the smile on my face the give-away that I wasn't angry, something that was important for a child to know.

"I did," She grinned self-righteously, clearly pleased with what she had done, "and she did call you silly daddy," She quickly turned back to the door, "Grandma, when we go?"

"We can go now if you want," my mom responded, smiling at her, "are you all ready?"

"Yes," Tamsin nodded in emphasis, "and Kirra too,"

I picked up my younger child again, sitting her so she was facing me, "Are you going out today with Grandma?"

Kirra nodded, turning as much as she could and reaching up to my mother, "UP, UP,"

Mom automatically stepped forward, picking her up, surprising us all when Kirra was content in her arms and not struggling to get back to her mother like she normally would be.

Tamsin walked over to the door also, having been listening to the conversation, before calling, "Bye Mommy, Bye Daddy,"

"Bye Girls," Both Gabriella and I responded in unison before the three of the left the room, my mom closing the door behind her.

"So," I began, turning to my wife and meeting her eyes and gesturing towards the tray, "let's eat,"

"You read my mind,"

* * *

**See, shortsomeness, but I don't hate it, at least that's something, right?**

**Anyways, Review for an update!!**


	49. Party

**First IP update of the year! First update of the year from me on a whole was Getting Through though, but I did start that chapter half way through December, so I need to write quicker, basically, and I have no excuse now (Other than homework that I barely ever get and my A Level exams which are months away), because I got this laptop for Christmas.**

**Those of you that read the chapter of Getting Through will know that I have started the epilogue for this story, there are still twelve chapters left without it but I had next to no inspiration for any story, I started it to gain inspiration from the changes in it, and it worked, although I was having so much fun writing it that I almost completely forgot that I had a GT chapter to finish, plus this story and MIR needed updating. MIR will have to wait a while though, but after this chapter it moves up my priority list.**

**Sorry about the long wait, i'm going for quality and quanitity now and have decided not to rush chapters like i used to, i'm also only writing one at a time with the full stories, and am only occasionally throwing oneshots in.**

* * *

**No One's POV**

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY KIRRA," the group chorused as her mother carried her into the room.

The startled little girl automatically buried her head in her mother's curls, her hair automatically blending in with the older woman's.

"It's ok, sweetie," Troy assured his daughter as he approached them, taking her out of her mother's arms to show her that she wasn't in any danger, "see, you know everyone,"

"GAMPY," Kirra screeched excitedly, reaching out to her grandfather, beaming as he took her from her father.

She was oblivious to the fact that she was being passed from person to person, didn't really understand why everyone was there, she was just excited, her grandfather had only been gone for just over two weeks, but in the mind of a two year old, two weeks may as well have been two years.

Kirra clung onto him tightly, making everyone in the room smile.

"She is so adorable," Sharpay commented as she approached Gabriella, "I may have to steal her,"

"What about me?" Tamsin whined from the floor before her mother got the chance to reply, "me too,"

"You're an angel," Sharpay responded, smiling at her.

"I not," Tamsin insisted, glancing over at her father as he spoke to Evan, "daddy says mommy's an angel, I'm a princess,"

"Of course," Sharpay agreed, vaguely recalling the various pet names she had heard when she had been formally introduced to the girls the previous week, "and Kirra is a sweetie, but mommy and daddy wouldn't be happy if anyone ate her,"

"Noooo," Tamsin agreed, prolonging the word for emphasis, "not eat my brother either,"

"Brother?" Sharpay questioned Gabriella as Tamsin skipped away happily.

"Tamsin wants a brother," Gabriella explained, smiling slightly as the words came out of her mouth, "It's the one thing she doesn't stop talking about,"

"How long are you two planning on making her wait?" the blonde questioned, "kids can be pretty impatient,"

"There's only a fifty fifty chance, Shar," Gabriella pointed out, "who's to say our next child will be a boy?"

"Me, duh," Sharpay responded, "besides, are you saying you wouldn't want a boy?"

"Of course I would," Gabriella admitted, "but either way I'll be happy as long as it's healthy,"

"Sounding so definite when your dad is in the room probably isn't a good idea," Sharpay murmured as she noticed the older man glance at them, "I'm guessing you haven't told him you've decided on having another at least?"

"I don't know how to," Gabriella sighed, "he'll just say that I'm thinking ahead of myself or he'll go on about how I'm just getting over something terrible and that should be the last thing on my mind, but it's what I want, it's what we all want,"

"Forget him," Sharpay decided, "what about Tay? What does she think?"

"I haven't told her," Gabriella whispered, her upset evident, "ever since Chad yelled at Tammy, things have been kind of strained between us,"

"Jaelin doesn't stop talking about Kirra," Sharpay lightened the mood by changing the subject, "she's been asking all week about the party, couldn't wait to see her,"

They both glanced over at the two-year-old, noticing for the first time that Kirra had now joined her, and they were chatting happily in the corner, clearly understanding eachother even if the adults couldn't all of the time.

"Cute, isn't it," Came Troy's voice from behind them as he approached, his arms instinctively wrapping around his wife's waist, "I've been watching them for a few minutes now,"

Both women agreed as the toddlers continued to talk, unaware that they were being watched.

**Andrew's POV**

I watched as my daughter laughed with her husband and friend, her happiness was almost contagious.

"Dad, she's fine," Evan told me, slightly startling me as he made me aware of his presence, "he's looking after her, really well, actually,"

"She's trying to hide something from me," I explained to him as I watched her, "she's barely said a word to me, she's trying to hide something,"

"She's ok," he repeated, "sure she's still a little worried about Kieran still being on the run, but other than that she's perfectly fine,"

"She's still hiding something," I insisted, knowing I was right.

I frowned as I moved my gaze from my daughter to my elder granddaughter, who was currently warily watching Chad, a show of fear in her eyes.

I approached her as he did, picking her up as I reached her, relieved that I had got to her first, Evan had filled me in on what had happened when it came to them.

I frowned as the younger man approached me, and felt the presence of my son at my side as I watched him.

Tamsin had noticed his advance, and had pressed her face into my shoulder in a show of avoidance.

"Tammy?" Chad spoke straight to her when he reached us, overlooking my son and I, "Uncle Chad's sorry for being horrible,"

Tamsin didn't respond, but remained tense in my arms, her face still covered as she clung tightly.

"I didn't want you to get upset," the man continued, knowing better than to try and reach out to her, it would only result in her screaming and her father shouting, "Sophie's missed you coming to our house,"

I noticed he was glancing nervously over my shoulder, and I turned to see my son in law staring at him angrily, obviously about to start approaching, I mirrored his movements , carrying his daughter to him, meeting him halfway and attempting to release her into his arms.

She fought, clinging tighter to me and struggling to hold on.

"Tamsin, it's daddy," Troy told her, "come on princess,"

She calmed as she heard his voice, lifting her head to look at him, and willingly allowing me to pass her to him when she had confirmed in her mind that it was, infact, her father.

"He was apologising to her," I responded as he shot me a questioning tone.

"He's only here because Gabriella wanted Taylor here," he explained, "I wanted to say no, but I'm weak when it comes to what my girls want,"

"Too weak sometimes," I reminded him, knowing that he would agree, "I have no idea what you're going to do when they start high school, they'll be swearing and back talking by then,"

"What did you do?" he questioned curiously.

"Carly's grounded for backtalk right now, it doesn't work well, but you have to punish them when they get out of line," he explained, "what you really want is for them to be like Isobel, avoiding trouble, Isobel always behaves like Gabi always did, perfectly,"

"You hear that Tammy?" he quizzed his daughter, pausing to let her face him then elaborating, "you have to be like your Aunt Isobel,"

"Nooooo," Tamsin insisted, "you be like Aunt Isobel, daddy," she grinned as both adults laughed at her words, "I funny?"

"You're very funny," I assured her, ruffling her hair and laughing again as she frowned at my gesture.

**Taylor's POV**

"Hey," I smiled weakly as I approached my friend. She glanced at me, matching my smile as she did, it was obvious she wasn't going to say anything, so I continued, "thanks," I started, "for letting me be here, you didn't have to,"

"No matter what's going on between our husbands, you're still my best friend," she insisted, her tone the usual friendly one she used, "I wanted you here, and so did Kirra," she paused, turning her head, I followed her gaze to see the eye contact she had with her husband, she'd caught him watching us as he held their older daughter, she frowned at him, as if giving him a slight warning look, before turning back to me, "nothing that they do will change that, it wasn't your fault anyway,"

"How is Tamsin?" I inquired warily, not knowing how she'd take my question, " I didn't want to approach her, I'm not sure how she'd take it, you know?"

"She'll be fine with you," Gabriella told me, her tone showing her sureness, "yesterday she told me that she'd decided you, Sophie and Tyler could come here, but Chad couldn't,"

"Really?" I giggled slightly, watching the smile on my friend's face, "she really said that?"

"Yes," She insisted, "She said 'Uncle Chad can't come because he's a bad person' , I just found it funny that although she says he's bad, she's still referring to him as Uncle Chad,"

"Kids," I smiled, glancing around the room.

"I wouldn't worry about it," my friend decided, "she'll forget that it even happened when Troy moves on and stops trying to get her to talk about it,"

"How are you two doing anyway?" I questioned, unsure as to how she would take the minor intrusion, "things better, or are you still getting there?"

"We're good," she grinned, "really good actually, we've had a few.." she paused, cutting off before clearly deciding on a word to use and continuing, "misunderstandings, but we're great now, talking everything out like before,"

I sighed, knowing that there was something she wasn't telling me, but figuring that it was probably not the best time to push her on the subject, "That's great," I responded, looking round at Troy's parents before quickly turning back to her, "How are things with Jack?"

"Weird," She admitted, "he's being nice, really nice," she paused, looking over at them, obviously to assure herself that they were not listening to her, "I guess it'll take some getting used to, even though he's only being nice for Troy and the girls," she frowned slightly, confusion evident as she turned back to me, "he even offered to cook last night."

"You didn't let him, right?" I almost choked in surprise, remembering the one time he'd tried to cook for us when we were in high school.

_Flashback (still POV)_

"_Kids, food," Jack Bolton called out, making the four of us turn to look at the back of the house in surprise._

"_Your dad cooked?" I finally managed to blurt out, turning to Troy, whom looked just as shocked as the rest of us._

"_I hope not," he answered quickly, beginning to walk towards the house, holding his hand out for his girlfriend as he reached us, "we should go see,"_

_She took his hand, allowing him to pull her up before questioning him, "Are you sure?"_

"_It'd be pretty nasty if we didn't go," he stated, smiling reassuringly at her before turning around, "besides, Chad likes food, don't you Chad?"_

"_Yep," my boyfriend responded, throwing down the basketball and watching it bounce away a few feet before coming over to join us, "lets go eat,"_

_I stood up next to him, allowing him to wrap an arm around my shoulders while I glanced at Gabriella's worried face as she turned around from the distance that she now was from us as her boyfriend led her into the house, Jack Bolton had never liked her, she spend most of her time while at this house trying to avoid him, but now she was being pulled towards him by her own boyfriend._

_We followed them, catching up to them in the kitchen, where they were both already looking warily at the food that had been left on the side._

"_I'm not sure whether to eat it or build with it," Troy finally commented as we continued looking at the almost solid blocks of what seemed to be spaghetti._

"_I'll eat it," Chad announced, "can't let food go to waste,"_

_He grabbed the four plates, already eating as he made his way outside balancing between his fingers, swallowing before evaluating, "There's a chance this stuff is only half cooked,"_

_End Flashback_

"No, I didn't let him," Gabriella laughed at my reaction, "I told him that it helped me keep my mind busy, it made me feel better,"

"But you don't even think about what happened much anymore," I pointed out, wondering if he would have caught her in her lie.

"He didn't say anything," she told me, "whether he believed me or not I don't know,"

"Who didn't say anything," came an unmistakable voice from behind us, "talking about me again?"

"We never talk about you," I responded, only half truthful, "Believe it or not Evan, you're not on my list of talking priorities,"

"Love you too, Tay," he grinned childishly before turning to his sister and trying unsuccessfully to put on a British accent as he began speaking, "your husband requests your presence in the kitchen,"

Gabriella narrowed her eyes at his attempt, before smiling at me and heading towards the kitchen.

I turned to Evan, knowing he'd continue talking as always.

"That got rid of her," he joked, his smile faltering under my gaze, "Um, well, here's the thing..." he paused watching me nervously before I prompted him to continue, "it's not really something I can ask Gabs about, it'd be awkward,"

"Evan!"I exclaimed, a little annoyed at his behaviour, "just spit it out,"

"Erm, ok," he restarted, still clearly nervous, "there's this girl, when, not girl really, she's the same age as me," he paused again, making me sigh irritatedly, "I really like her," he continued, "but the last time I asked someone out was 3 years ago, I haven't even been on a date since we broke up last year, and I'm older now, how do I ask her out?"

I bit my lip in both amusement and surprise, I'd never thought that he'd come to me with a problem like that, I'd always thought that it'd be my sister eventually growing up and asking me those questions, not my best friends little brother.

"Just be honest," I advised him, only just managing to hide my amusement, "Women like men that are honest, and don't be worried, be confident, tell her how you feel, ask her out, the worst thing that could happen is her saying no, and it wouldn't be the end of the world,"

"Thanks," he muttered quickly, nodding as he turned, "I should, um, probably get back, I have a class in a few hours,"

I watched as he walked away, before glancing around myself, eager to tell both my husband and my friend what I had just been asked.

**Gabriella's POV**

"What's up?" I questioned my husband as soon as I walked into the room, "Are you ok?"

I walked up to him, smiling as his arms wrapped around me at the first point possible.

"I missed you," he told me, kissing my forehead softly.

"I didn't go anywhere," I answered, confused, "I've been here all day,"

"Surrounded by people," he commented, "We haven't had a moment alone together all day,"

"Are you forgetting this morning?" I smirked at him, "before the girls were awake,"

"I'll never forget this morning," he smiled at the memory, "I quite like being woken up like that, even if it is at five thirty for nothing but a movie,"

"Hey, you know why we couldn't," I replied, proud that my teasing from the morning was still having an effect on him, "not while your parents are here, it'd be too weird, besides it was a good movie, I didn't want you to miss it, we haven't got it on DVD,"

He smiled, brushing my hair behind his ear as a pushed me away slightly so he could look at me, "You're perfect, you know that?"

"You're not so bad yourself," I giggled, "we need to get back to the party, you know what Sharpay will think if we're gone for too long,"

"Not yet," he whispered, pulling me back to him and smelling my hair, "I don't want you to go,"

"Was this all you wanted me in here for?" I quickly asked, suddenly curious, "or was there something else?"

"Tamsin's got herself a little worked up about Chad being here," he admitted, "she's fine, she's with my dad, but I figured I should tell you,"

"Ok," I whispered, completely relaxed in his embrace, "why did you have to get me in a different room to tell me that?"

"So I could hold you like this without Sharpay thinking things like she would have thought if she saw us," he responded, "she'd have found a reason to point us out to everyone,"

I nodded against his chest, frowning when he eventually pulled away.

"We should get back," he decided, clearly torn between our daughter's party and the moment we were having, before laughing at my pout, "you can pout all you like, but there's only an hour left, then we can make them all leave, and have some family time,"

"I like that idea," I smiled in response as he led me back towards our friends and family, "you should have more ideas like that.

* * *

**Next update overall should be MIR, i feel guilty when it comes to that story, because i've been majorly neglecting it, it hasn't been updated in atleast 3 months, probably longer, it won't be up for at least a week though, i'm starting it tomorrow.**

**Review!!**


	50. Relationships, IMPORTANT AN

**REPOSTED BECAUSE I FORGOT SOMETHING IMPORTANT: I won't update again for a while, i have major exams coming up in like, a month and have to study, i will be working on the chapter but it won't be up, i am hoping to update MIR before my exams though, because of this though, i'm giving the best reviewer a preview.**

**3am, perfect time to start a chapter, or a psychology essay, I'm thinking chapter, I have over a week for the psychology essay, even though it will probably be finished before this chapter, yes, you got it, I'm writing this before the chapter (and watching walk the line, which I love), I'm terrible.**

**After writing: This is kinda long for me, mainly because I feel kinda guilty for barely updating. Plus, there's flashbacks, and it takes place over like, four/five days or so.**

* * *

**Troy's POV**

"We need to start looking at schools for Tamsin," my wife suddenly broke the silence of the room, "It's March, she's meant to start kindergarten in September, we should have done all of this before we moved, I should have got it all organised, why didn't I think about this? If I'd have been using my brain at all, I'd have thought about it,"

I laughed at her obliviousness to the fact that she was openly insulting herself before replying, "I've already started looking around on the net, I was going to say something when I had a short-list of something, you go crazy worrying over things like this,"

"You really need to stop trying to protect me from every little thing," she responded, slightly calmer as she looked over at me from her position by the window, "I should be worrying about these things, she's starting school, our little girl is starting school, I don't want her to go to school, maybe I shouldn't go back to work, maybe I should home school her..."

"Honey, you need to let go some time," I reminded her, smiling at the expression on her face, "she has to go to school,"

"Let go!" she exclaimed, "my baby girl is four years old and you're telling me to let go!"

"Not completely," I elaborated, "but think of what she'd be missing out on if she didn't go to school, socialisation and that stuff," I examined her face as her features relaxed again in slight understanding, "I seem to remember another problem I had with you that was quite similar to this,"

"You have to bring that up, don't you?" she scoffed playfully, hands on hips, "you can't just let it drop,"

"Hey, I thought it was cute, I love how dedicated you are," I commented, "but if you try it again next time, I'll bring your mom in to stop you,"

_Flashback (still POV)_

_The sound of my daughter crying filled the house, making me rush in the direction the sound was coming from._

_I approached the room as the crying stopped, and entered to find the almost two-year-old cradled in my wife's arms._

"_What do you think you're doing?" I quizzed her sternly, barely successful in keeping up with my demeanour as she turned to me, biting her lip, "what have I told you? Put her down,"_

"_She was crying," Gabriella tried excusing, frowning as I approached her, taking our daughter out of her arms._

"_You have to stop doing this," I sighed, " you can't keep straining yourself to hold her, you have to stop," _

"_I'm sorry," she cried, tears falling steadily down her cheeks, making me set our daughter on the floor and rush to embrace her, "but she was crying, she fell, I couldn't leave her, I'm her mom,"_

"_I know," I assured her, before placing my hand on her stomach, "but you're this one's mom too, and he or she needs you to stop picking up their big sister, it's not good for you,"_

"_You won't let me do anything," she whined, "It's always, Gabriella, don't climb on chairs to reach high places, Gabriella, don't use cleaning products if they have chemicals in them, Gabriella, don't eat that stuff, Gabriella, don't pick up Tamsin, it's not fair, I want to be able to pick up my daughter, I want to be able to comfort her when she's upset, I want to be able to clean the stupid house,"_

"_Only a few more months," I comforted her, "then you can do whatever you want, and I won't object unless it's life threatening,"_

"_I don't want to wait," she complained, impatience shining through, "I hate not being able to do anything without you getting mad,"_

"_It doesn't make me mad," I insisted, "It just makes me worry, and you don't have to wait long now, just think about the baby,"_

_She nodded, reluctantly agreeing with me as our daughter started crying again, re-starting the whole process._

_End flashback_

"My mother would not want to stop me," she grinned, approaching and immediately sitting down next to me, "she'd tell you to stop picking on me,"

"I won't have to though, will I?" I replied, looking her straight in the eye.

"Maybe," she giggled in response, "If Tammy or Kirra cry,"

"Gabs" I warned, unable to stay serious as her laugher filled the room, "you really need to look at things with some perspective, like going back to work, you need to make your mind up instead of repeatedly changing it, they won't wait forever,"

"Actually," she continued laughing through her words, "I called yesterday, they offered to pay for me to complete my law degree, as long as I work fast and can finish it within a year, I really didn't think about finishing it you know, they weren't that bothered about it back in Albuquerque, they were fine with me there for pretty much just work experience, and I guess it kind of was like that, my salary wasn't much, and what with the kids I wasn't there constantly,"

"But what if I decided I want to pay?" I asked quickly, laughing as she stuck her tongue out, "I'm serious, then you won't feel obligated to continue working for them if it gets a little too much, plus, you won't have to rush to complete it,"

"I can do it within a year," she insisted, "you don't have to pay for everything you know, the whole point in me getting this degree is so you don't have to keep paying for everything,"

"I like to," I told her, "I like being able to look after you, I like being able to be everything for you and the girls,"

"But I don't," she admitted, looking away from me, "I need to work, sitting here doing nothing every single day, it kills me, I can wait until Tammy starts school, the offices have daycare, so I can take Kirra with me, but I have to work, for my own sanity,"

"Ok," I smiled at her rant, "you can work, I never said you couldn't, all I'm saying is, let me pay for you to complete your degree,"

She pondered over my suggestion for a few seconds, biting her lip as she thought, before eventually replying, "are you sure?"

"I wouldn't have said anything if I wasn't," I pointed out, chuckling again at her new expression, "what am I here for if not to give you whatever you want?"

"You really like spoiling me don't you?" she asked, resting her head on my shoulder as she normally did, "and the girls, our kids are going to be spoiled brats, and it's going to be entirely your fault, and I will too, and that will be your fault. Oh my god, I'm going to be like your team mates wives, you have to stop, I can't be like them, I don't want to be like them I......"

"You're not like them," I interrupted her minor panic, "they have no intention of working, you're insisting on it even though we don't need the money, you're a great mom and they don't even want kids. Some of them have no family values at all, you always put yourself after our family, even your distant relatives come before you when you see them, they think of nothing but themselves, and you need to think about yourself more," I paused to breathe, but she didn't interrupt, knowing I wasn't finished, "you're amazing, I don't know how you do it sometimes, I've given up on saying that nothing could make me love you more, because everything you do does just that. My spoiling you isn't going to make you behave differently, you've been telling me not to spoil you for the past ten years, I haven't stopped, but you haven't changed, if you haven't by now, you won't, I don't want you comparing yourself to those sluts,"

"Sluts?" she asked questioningly, lifting her head to look at me, "That's a little harsh isn't it?"

"They're sluts, baby, trust me on that one," I tried, but noticed the unsure glint in her eyes, prompting me to explain my words, "It's no big deal, ok?" she nodded, still watching me curiously, "when I went back to work after everything..." I began, still unsure if I should be telling her this, "Jen come along with Mike, she was outright coming onto me, I turned her down of course, I love you, I'd never do that, but she keeps shooting me these looks, right in front of Mike as well, I thought he'd be pissed, but he apologised, he knows she does it, he doesn't care Gabs, he says as long as she's happy she can do what she wants. I know you don't like me saying it, but she is a slut,"

"She acted like she was my friend," Gabriella sighed, clearly a little upset, "she pretended she was my friend and then she does this, it's sick, it's.... I can't let her carry on doing this, if she can go to practice with Mike, then I can come with you too, right?"

I nodded in response, just glad that she hadn't chosen to be mad at me, "I'd love for you to be there actually,"

"What about the girls, could they come?" she continued shooting questions, "I want her to see what she's trying to do, I want her to see them, so she knows that her games would affect them too if you were stupid enough to reciprocate in any way, if I was stupid enough to you'd do anything,"

"I could probably get them in," I assured her, "I think it's a good idea, maybe if you're there, and she sees how we are together, she'll figure out that I'm not interested in anyone but you,"

"I'm not mad at you," she assured me, "I get why you didn't tell me straight away, and it's not your fault that she is, as you put it, a slut. Besides, I know you love me, even if I was doubting it because of everything before, I'm not anymore."

"I love you," I smiled in response, kissing her lightly on the forehead as she settled back in my arms.

"How long do you think your parents will be with the girls?" she suddenly questioned, looking up at me smirking, "you think they'll be a while, give us a chance to have a little quality time?"

"They'll be ages," I insisted, following her thoughts, "what with them leaving tomorrow and everything,"

- - - -

**Taylor's POV**

"What if I can't Tay?" Gabriella suddenly questioned me, making me look up from the food I was currently preparing.

"Can't what?" I questioned, frowning in concentration as I tried to remember parts of the conversation we were previously having, "sorry, I completely zoned out there,"

"What if I can't give him a son?" she shot back at me, filling in the blanks in my memory, "I know he says he doesn't care, but he must care, he's been talking about having a son since high school, what if I can't give him one? What if he leaves me for someone who can?"

"Gabs," I sighed, abandoning the food to hug her quickly, "he would never leave you, he loves you, and he may have cared in high school, but we've all grown up since then, I didn't know you were still so insecure, have you talked to him about this?" her silence answered the question for me, "you need to tell him you feel this way, he'd want to know about it, if you're scared that he'd leave you over something like that he'd want to know. Gabs, you've given him two beautiful daughters, and you've both said you're not done yet, why worry about something that may not ever become a reality?"

"I don't know," she admitted, watching me as I returned to the food, "just something his dad said I guess, before he left yesterday, about not having a grandson, what if I can't? "

"Troy won't care," I continued pushing the fact, "as long as you and any children you have are healthy, he doesn't care about anything else, most guys are like that, you know, and the ones that aren't are not worth the time of day,"

"Do you really think I should talk to him about this?" she questioned worriedly, "he'll probably just think I'm crazy or something, his parents wanted to put me in counselling you know, they think I didn't hear them, but I did, he refused anyway, but if I tell him this, he'll probably agree, may even get me sectioned,"

"No he wouldn't," I laughed, "You're overreacting Gabs, again."

We were both cut off by the loud laughter coming from the nursery of my house, smiling to eachother at the thought of our daughters playing happily together.

"They'll be here soon," Gabriella suddenly spoke up, "do you think they've been fighting again today?"

"I hope not," I answered, "we could all do without the stress, especially you,"

"I don't understand why they can't just move on like we have," she admitted quietly, "is it really that hard for guys to forgive eachother?"

"Too much testosterone?" I suggested, smiling as she laughed at me answer.

"Probably," she agreed, "but it's just annoying after a while, it gets to a point where they are the only ones that care about what happened in the first place, not even Tammy acknowledges it anymore,"

"Troy won't get over it though," I pointed out, "Chad only defends himself, but Troy won't give it up, because as far as he's concerned, someone upset his little girl, and no one is allowed to do that, I honestly think if it wasn't for you, he'd have killed him by now, or at least hurt him in some way,"

"He's not that extreme, " she suddenly became defensive, "he'd never hurt anyone, especially not his best friend,"

"Gabs," I maintained my soft tone as I spoke to her, "when it comes to you and your girls, he'd do anything, did you know he has a private investigator looking for Kieran?"

"He does?" she gasped in shock, "why would he do that?"

"He has security all around your house too," I ignored her question, telling her more that she clearly hadn't been told, "that was his mom's idea,"

"I haven't seen anyone," she replied sceptically, "he wouldn't go that over the top,"

"They're in plain clothes," I explained, "one of them sits in a car across the street, the others patrol the neighbourhood, he's not taking any chances, he's even given them pictures of people whom are allowed to see you, you know, us, your family and friends," I smiled at the look of confusion on her face as she so clearly thought about it, "he's protective, it's in his nature,"

"Why wouldn't he tell me?" she questioned, looking me in the eye, it was clear she was upset.

"He knew what you'd say," I tried sounding casual, "he told Chad as soon as he'd decided, that's how I know, don't be mad at him over this, he's only trying to protect you when he's not home, he's worried,"

"There's nothing to worry about anymore," she complained, "he's worrying about nothing,"

"Gabs," I sighed, "Kieran's still out there, that's what's worrying him, he just doesn't want anything to happen to you, so he's refusing to take chances,"

"What about when I go out?" she fumed, "does he get them to follow me? Do they give him reports? You know, to tell him what I ate, how many breaths I've taken each day, what shampoo I used to wash my hair?"

"They're not watching you so much," I tried elaborating, unsure that my attempts would actually get anywhere, "it's the area, just so Kieran can't get near if he does come back,"

"There are numbers I can call if he comes back," she all but shouted, "the police are never far from me now, isn't that enough?"

I frowned, about to respond when I heard the front door open, waiting mere seconds before our silent, yet calm, husbands entered the room.

**Gabriella's POV**

He wrapped his arms around me from behind, kissing my cheek as he whispered, "I missed you today,"

I pulled out of his grip, turned around to face him and hissed, "I want them gone,"

He frowned, confusion etched in his features before he glanced over at Taylor, I followed his gaze just as she mouthed, "I'm sorry."

His mood dramatically dropped as he turned back to me, "I can't do that,"

"I want them gone," I repeated, "I don't need babysitters, I can look after myself,"

"Knowing they're there," he began to explain, sighing as I turned to the side, before continuing, "it gives me some peace of mind, it makes it easier for me to leave you, I can't leave you unprotected again, I can't let him just take you like he did last time. The investigator is closing in, ok? I promise you, as soon as they've got him, as soon as he can't hurt you anymore, they'll be gone,"

I frowned, he was always able to calm me down, and his words had made it obvious to me that he still blamed himself for what happened, and we weren't really in the right place to talk about this right now, our friends were trying to look busy cooking while we were about to start fighting in their kitchen!

"A month," I stated, looking up at his face, "they have a month, then I want them gone,"

"Thank you," he sighed, clearly relieved that I had agreed to let the security stay, "you know I only did it because I love you, right?"

I nodded, letting him embrace me fully, "they're not necessary though,"

"They let me know you're safe," he evaluated, "of course they're necessary,"

"Girls are upstairs," I told him, suggesting in my tone that he should go and bring them down for dinner, knowing that he would be reluctant to let go of me, as he always was after fights, no matter how minor.

"I'll get them," Chad piped up, glancing around the room, "Kirra's with them?"

I nodded, "she likes to be involved in whatever Tamsin's doing now,"

He gave a weak smile in response before heading up the stairs, I turned to my husband, caught the last moment of the look on his face, "what, you protecting me from our friends too?"

"From the world," he claimed, smiling at my comment, "It's a big place, there are lots of things that could hurt you, I have to stop as many of them as I can,"

"Then maybe you should get reporters to stop calling the house," I grinned, twisting in his arms to face him more easily, watching the expression on his face change once again, "It's no big deal," I tried reasoning, knowing what he was thinking, "they all want an exclusive, I get that, I won't give them one,"

"My bosses think we should," he admitted somewhat angrily, "they've been getting calls too,"

"Couldn't your publicist just release a statement?" I asked, both of us now almost oblivious to our friend's continued presence, "why an exclusive deal?"

"Management think that people will relate to it better if it comes directly from us, "he explained, "I said I'd talk to you about it, but I'm not going to force you, it's you they all want to speak to, so it should be your decision,"

"We've tried so hard to keep our personal lives private," I frowned, "we'd be giving them what they want, is it really the only way?"

"We have to say something sometime," he pointed out, "or we'll never be left alone, that incident a few weeks ago when we were out with the girls will keep repeating itself, and honestly, I'd rather it was possible for you to go out without me without being swamped,"

"They want me to admit that I'm breaking down though," I claimed, "They'd twist everything to make it seem like I'm not coping, and then when the kids are older, they'll be able to find it on the internet,"

"I know," he whispered comfortingly, "but if that happens, I will get every publicist I can find to correct it all,"

"Why can't they just let us get on with our lives?" I questioned, "and why do your bosses want us to do this now? why is it bothering them? Are they being asked about it?"

"Constant calls according to them," he responded, "don't make a decision now, ok? Think about it, whatever you decide,"

"Guys," Taylor suddenly interrupted, "you're getting a little too close considering there's kids around,"

We both smiled at her words, knowing she was right, but not having noticed before her comment.

Tamsin's squeal of "DADDY," as she entered the room was the next thing we heard, followed by giggling as he let go of me in order to pick her up.

Chad followed her in, Sophie at his feet, Kirra in his arms, her arms outstretched as soon as she saw us.

Troy smiled, taking her from his friend in his free arm.

"Giving mommy a break?" he questioned our youngest daughter, laughing as she stared at him before reaching for his hair, "Not that easy to pull my hair, is it?"

"Daddy's hair not long enough," Tamsin tried explaining to her, before looking over to me, "got to be real long, hasn't it mommy?"

"Food ready?" Chad asked his Taylor, trying to ignore the interactions between us and our daughters.

"Pretty much," she spoke, directed at all of us instead of just to him, "You should all go through,"

"Are you ok with both of them?" I asked my husband as he started to carry both our daughters out of the room, "need me to help?"

"Nah, we're fine, aren't we girls?" he smiled in reply.

Tamsin nodded with enthusiasm, Kirra remained responseless, still intent on pulling his hair.

I watched as the two men left the room, the three children going with her.

"How did you get so lucky?" Taylor suddenly questioned me, making me turn to her curiously, "Not the whole over protective thing of course, that's a little crazy,"

"It is," I agreed, "Lucky how, though?"

"Chad isn't great at the parent thing," she admitted, "I guess it's because Tyler's too young and playing dolls with Sophie would be weird for him, but you, you're married to the male version of Mary Poppins, a guy who actually wants a big family, they're rare, you know,"

"I knew when I first became friends with him that he'd be a good father," I admitted happily, "it's who he is, you know, I used to wonder what I did to deserve him, I thought that it was too good to be true, finding someone who wants what you want, I was actually shocked when he asked me out, I honestly thought he didn't like me that way, despite what you kept saying. He's protective, but he says it's because he loves us so much, he can't let anything happen to us,"

"Do you ever think," she began, seemingly cautious with her words, "that things would be easier for you now, if you hadn't of started a family so soon?"

"No," I told her truthfully, "I can't imagine life without my girls. Why? Do you?"

"Just after Tyler was born," Taylor sighed, "When he wouldn't stop crying, and Sophie was being impossible, I still feel so guilty about it, I just wondered, if it was normal, to feel that way,"

"I guess," I answered unsurely, "I never have, but like you said, I get more help, it's different for you, besides, it's not that you don't love them, that you don't want them, you were just stressed, and probably still hormonal, I used to tell Troy I hated him both times I was pregnant just because he wouldn't let me do anything, and then I'd cry because I thought that I'd upset him, and then I'd feel guilty about that because he'd try comforting me, we all say, think and do things that we don't mean, especially when we're hormonal and stressed.

Taylor smiled at my words, "Thanks, Gabs, you're right, I guess I never thought of it like that,"

"Come on," I smiled, "lets take the food through before world war three starts in there,"

- - - -

**No One's POV**

Gabriella smiled as her husband sprinted down the court, discreetly blowing her a kiss as he did so. She knew that most of his affectionate gestures were for show, but that didn't mean she couldn't enjoy them, besides, she knew he'd continue as long as she wanted if she told him she liked it.

She knew Jen's eyes were on her, but remained focused on him as the small game continued between the team.

She was so fixed on him that the blow of a whistle startled her, but she smiled as he approached her, and stood up, walking towards him herself.

He picked her up with ease as soon as he reached her, spinning her round before setting her feet back on the floor, his hands both remaining on her waist.

"You were great out there," she insisted, unable to hide her smile, she hadn't seen him play in a while.

"I was distracted," he smirked, "I think you may be the only distraction on the planet that makes me play better,"

"Trying to impress me, were you?" she played along with his flirting, sensing someone advancing on them from behind, "there are other ways,"

"I know," he smiled, "already know about a lot of them,"

"Hi, you two!" Came Jen's extra perky voice from behind them, a voice they had both predicted they would soon hear, "It's great to see you again Gab!"

"My name," Gabriella corrected somewhat harshly, "Is Gabriella, not Gab,"

"Doesn't Chad call you Gab?" Jen quizzed, before her demeanour changed, "well, whatever, how are you? Kidnapped, pretty major stuff there, you good?"

"She's fine," Troy snapped, sensing his wife go tense and pulling her closer to him, "why don't you try not talking?"

Jen sighed, before quickly changing the subject, "How'd you manage to get her in anyway? They never normally let outsiders in,"

Neither of them responded, all that mattered was that she was there, how he managed to get her in wasn't really any of Jen's business, she didn't need to know about the little white lie he'd told.

_Flashback_

"_It would just be better for everyone if they came," Troy tried reasoning with the man in front of him, despite having no success for the previous half hour, "I can play better if I know they're safe,"_

"_You play great without them," came Mitchell's response, "You don't need them here, from what the guys have been saying, you're paying enough out on security to keep them safe,"_

_Troy sighed, he still wasn't getting anywhere, he hadn't been given much of a choice, "It's just," he began, pausing to make sure he had the other man's attention, "It doesn't matter,"_

"_No, go on," Mitchell prompted, waving his hand slightly for effect._

"_I'm worried about Gabs," Troy elaborated as he frowned, "I thought she was ok, I really did, but then I got home last night to find her going through all our bank records, she kept asking me where I got the money to pay the guy that took her. She was screaming about it for hours, I was glad the girls were with their uncle," he paused, seeing that his story was having the desired effect on the other man, "when she finally finished yelling, she started crying, telling me she was sorry that she was so bad to me that I'd pay someone to take her," he paused again, watching the other man's features before realising he had to go slightly further, "this morning, she woke me up at like, five, to tell me she was sorry for everything last night and that she knows I'd never pay someone to take her. If she was ok, that wouldn't have happened, and, I feel like it's because I'm away from her almost every day, that this guy said something to her, and now she's starting to believe it because I'm not home with her,"_

_He stopped, waiting for Mitchell to respond, mentally reminding himself that he'd have to inform his wife of her manic state when he got home._

"_Why didn't you tell me this?" Mitchell finally asked after a long pause, "these are the sort of things you need to tell me, that we need to keep hidden from the press,"_

"_I just need to spend time with her," Troy insisted, "I need to help her to trust me again,"_

"_Ok," Mitchell finally relented, "she can come, but not the kids, kids will cause more distraction than we can deal with right now,"_

"_Thank you," Troy smiled, speeding out of the office before the other man could change his mind._

_End Flashback_

"Is this some kind of weird sponsored silence where you can speak at certain times?" Jen began shooting suggestions at them, "some kind of pact, you're not allowed to talk to other people? Some strange after effect of that kidnapping thing?"

"Look, don't bother trying to be my friend," Gabriella ordered calmly, "we're not friends, and after what I've been told, we can never be friends, it's not going to happen, you need to learn to accept that and leave us alone,"

"We got on so well at that dinner," Jen claimed, "it was like we'd known eachother for like, centuries or something, if we hadn't got on so well then, would have been a complete bitch and told you how much sweat your husband got on you when he picked you up before showering, I'd never let Mike do that, you know? Totally gross,"

"I can assure you," Gabriella smirked, "That I am used to his sweat,"

"If we're not friends," Jen replied snappily, suddenly annoyed, "why would you tell me that?"

"Oh, I didn't say I meant that," Gabriella insisted, " but then again..."

"I don't really care what you two get up to in your own home," Jen hissed, "why don't you just go and bother someone who cares? Or pick up those kids your husband always seems so bothered about from whatever poor soul you've palmed them off onto,"

They both smiled at eachother, highly amused as the blonde stormed away, slamming the doors on her way out.

"Have I told you how much I love you?" Troy mentioned as soon as their laughter had subsided.

"A few hours ago," She reminded him, "but I like to hear it,"

"I love you," he repeated, before continuing without giving her a chance to respond, "Any idea why Jen is so against hearing about 'what we get up to in our own home'?"

* * *

**11 pages, which is long for me, it's actually longer than what I've got of part one of the epilogue so far, but that's not finished, and then there's part two to write, making it right next, hopefully, although I may take a look at the cobra first.**

**Review - remember, because i won't be updating for longer than normal due to exams, best review gets a sneak peek of the next chapter.**


	51. Trouble, second attempt

**AND SHE DOES IT AGAIN: I swear, one day i will engage brain and not forget things (in future i will try to avoid this): The winner of the preview competition was SpiritxXxWildfire, and because i'm such a terrible updated now (i swear i never used to be), i'm going to keep it going for the rest of the story, with both this and MIR, so the best reviewer on each story, gets a preview of the next chapter.**

**I'm so awesome at updating MIR, I got a whole 2 pages then wrote this instead, admit it, you're impressed with my attention span.**

**There is something in this chapter that I wasn't really planning on putting in this soon, it was always going to be in here, but in one of the last five chapters, not the last ten, until I realised that the epilogue wouldn't really work if I didn't at least put it in now, it's not going to become a focus point of the story though, so don't expect it to be brought up every chapter, I hate it when that happens, which is why Kieran hasn't been mentioned in every chapter, there's no need for it, and it gets boring, repetitive and annoying to write, plus, going on about it would kind of defeat the purpose of the story by going against the semi-main theme: forgiveness.**

* * *

**No One's POV**

"I'm gonna go and shower up," Troy finally decided, reluctantly releasing his wife from his arms, "You''ll be ok?"

She nodded, giggling slightly at his worry, "I know you like to think otherwise, but it is possible for me to go without you for brief periods of time,"

"No you can't," he insisted, "you need me here all the time, because you miss me when I leave your sight, it's incredibly hard for you, I may have to quit just so you can spend all day every day looking at me,"

"You wish," she laughed, "I don't need to spend every single minute of my life with you,"

"But you want to," he smirked.

She gasped through her giggles, hitting him playfully as she reminded him, "weren't you going somewhere?"

He sighed, tucking her hair behind her ears, "I'll be as quick as I can, not a hair out of place when I get back, ok?"

She nodded, watching him as he finally turned around, walking through the doors and leaving her alone in the gym.

He looked up just as Chad was about to walk past him, heading back towards his wife, stopping him as he passed and calmly instructing him, "keep an eye on her,"

"Got it," his friend replied, resuming his steady pace.

Troy frowned, he knew that just months ago he wouldn't have panicked so much about her safety, but now he was all too wary of leaving her alone, so wary in fact, that he was telling his friend, whom he had just been in a major fight with, to look after her until he was there.

"Bolton," he heard the unmistakeable voice of Mitchell Larson, "my office, now,"

He obediently followed, cursing the man in his head for increasing the time he was away from his wife.

"I assume you know what this is about," Mitchell sighed as he sat in his office.

Troy stayed in the doorway, leaning on it's frame, "not a clue, will it take long? I really want to get back to my wife,"

"She is what this is about," Mitchell explained, telling him what he already knew, "you lied to me,"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Troy claimed, watching the man carefully to try and analyse his reaction.

"There's nothing wrong with her, is there?" Mitchell questioned, stating what had been obvious to everyone whom had observed Gabriella that day, "why did you really want her here?"

"She's far from ok," Troy defended his actions, "it comes and goes, she can be fine for long periods of time, then she just turns, and she's completely irrational, you haven't been there, which isn't your fault, I haven't asked for help, but you don't know what's going on with her,"

"Maybe she should talk to someone," Mitchell repeated the suggestion that had been given by so many others, "it could help,"

"She can talk to me," Troy insisted, "i've told everyone else, so I'll tell you, she doesn't need help from anyone other than me and our family."

Mitchell was about to reply, but paused as the other man widened his eyes as they heard a piercing scream, a scream they both knew had come from his wife.

Sprinting out of the office and towards the place he'd left her, Troy let panic overtake him, what if Kieran had come back? He couldn't let that man hurt his family again.

He reached the gym to see his friend sprinting out of the other door, and frantically looked around, sighing in relief at the sight of his wife standing rigidly against the wall, tears streaming down her face.

He ran to her, pulling her as close to his body as he could, allowing her to cling to him as he held her tightly.

"What happened?" he murmured into her hair, not expecting her to reply.

"He....he was.... here," she cried, "he...tr.....tried...to.. get me.... again,"

Troy was torn. Kieran was back, and right at that moment all his instincts were telling him to join his friend in hunting down the bastard and ripping his head off, but he knew his wife needed him, and no matter how strong his desire for revenge was, he couldn't bring himself to leave her.

He heard a sharp intake of breath and knew immediately that Mitchell had heard what little his wife had said.

He made a move to cover her ears before the loud, fierce yelling started, "HOW THE HELL DID HE GET IN HERE? I WANT A FULL SECURITY CHECK, NOW!"

As soon as he was sure the other man's shouting had subsided, Troy moved his hands from his wife's ears to embrace her tighter, stroking her back with one in an attempt to comfort her.

"It's ok, I'm here," he whispered, closing his eyes in response to her sobbing, "I'm never going to leave you again, never, I'm here, I'm not going anywhere I promise,"

She was still desperately clinging to him, and he could almost feel the adrenaline in his system, he knew in that moment that he didn't want Kieran sent down, he wanted blood, he wanted the man dead, but at the same time he knew this was something he wasn't likely to get, the last thing his wife and daughters needed was him taken away from them, especially now.

He listened until her cries subsided, the occasional sniffle the only clear indication of her tears, her red eyes had been impossible to see since she buried her face in his chest, he kissed her forehead lightly, attempting to do everything he could to let her know she was safe, that he wasn't going to let anything hurt her anymore.

He didn't know how long he'd been holding her when Mitchell finally spoke up, but when it happened, the man had seemed somewhat reluctant to speak, but also partly glad that he had good news for the couple.

"Chad's just called," he spoke, breaking the relative silence, knowing that it was unlikely that either of them had heard his cell ring, "That man won't be bothering anyone anymore," Troy turned to him, questioning him with his eyes, slightly surprised by what followed, "he caught up with him, the police just arrested him. Idiot nearly got hit by a lorry too, Chad's on his way back here,"

"Good," was all Troy could utter as he glanced down at his wife, realising the angle of her head had changed, she must have lifted it at some point, he brushed his lips against her crown again, still holding onto her tightly.

He'd been longing for the day where he'd find out she was safe, when he found out that Kieran could no longer hurt her, but his expectations were not met, he didn't feel relieved, he felt angry that he himself had not taken the other man's life, not that his wife would have let him, he had wanted death as a punishment, conviction was not enough, and now the only justice she was likely to get was the conviction of the men, but still, despite that he made a mental note to track down the driver of the lorry and thank them, even though they had not hit him, it must have slowed him down, so, although to anyone else it would not seem so, as far as he was concerned, he owed that person the world, because that person had helped to save one of the centre points of his world.

He frowned as he remembered the words he'd left her with before being called into the office, "not a hair out of place when I get back," she'd nodded, she'd been happy, and now she was in this state, he didn't know what to do, his daughters would be confused and upset if they weren't picked up soon, but he also knew that he needed to give his wife every last ounce of his attention.

She moved her head from his chest and her bloodshot eyes made the decision for him, he took out his cell, dialling a number while keeping his other arm tightly around his wife, whom was now watching him weakly, stray tears still occasionally falling down her cheeks.

"Hey," the woman answered the phone, "what's up?"

"I need you to keep the girls tonight Shar," he informed her, not really wanting to explain, "tell them that we're sorry, and that we're ok but I have to look after mommy,"

"What happened, Troy?" Sharpay rushed, "Is she ok? What's going on? What do I tell them?"

"Nothing, just tell me they can stay, I'll talk to them tomorrow," he tried, knowing that the desperation in her voice would stop her questions.

"Of course they can stay," she assured him, "just make sure that she's ok, Tamsin and Kirra will be fine, we can make cookies or something, Zeke should be home soon,"

"Thank you," he sighed, "see you tomorrow,"

He looked back at his wife after hanging up, surprised that she had not objected to his decision, even more surprised when she spoke, although frowning at the weakness in her voice, "Can we go home? I really don't feel good,"

He nodded, tightening his arm around her as he began to lead her towards the car park.

He paused for a second, turning back to Mitchell, "Can you deal with the police? I think she just needs to rest."

Mitchell nodded, prompting him to turn, intending to continue walking, but he was halted again before even moving as he felt an increased pressure on his arm.

He looked down at his wife, she looked like she was sleeping, but he knew she wasn't, he watched her sleeping enough to know that.

"Baby?" he questioned, lifting her properly so he could carry her, trying to stop himself from panicking, she was still breathing, any number of things could have made her pass out, she had been scared, maybe her body had sensed that she needed to escape, "you have to wake up, angel, we're going home,"

He glanced back, noticing Mitchell still watching them, his phone in his hand by his ear, he turned his attention back to his wife, vaguely hearing the man as he spoke to what he assumed was someone that could help.

- - - -

Troy jumped up as his wife started to stir, quickly rushing back to her side from the chair he had been resting in.

He watched, smiling as her eyes opened and a confused look crossed her face.

"It's ok," he told her, "we're in the hospital, you've been scaring me again,"

"Sorry?" she offered, clearly still not understanding the smile on his face, "what's going on?"

"The doctor told me," his smile still shone through as he watched her, he frowned slightly before continuing, "why didn't you tell me?"

She narrowed her eyes still unsure, "tell you what?"

He sighed, turning as he heard the doctor behind him, "does she have amnesia?"

The doctor walked past him, approaching his wife as he did.

"Hello, I'm doctor Kent, can you tell me your full name?" he questioned her, laughing slightly as she rolled her eyes.

"Gabriella Louisa Bolton," she replied correctly, clearly not seeing the point in the exercise.

"How old are you?"

"27"

"What year is it?"

"2017"

"How many children to you have?"

"Two, two daughters,"

"Ok, one more question, how many fingers am I holding up?"

"Four,"

"Very good, technically full marks,"

"Is it possible that she doesn't know?" Troy suddenly cut in, "I mean, do you know for sure that they did actually tell her?"

"No, I can't be sure that she was told, but I don't know why she wouldn't be," The man replied, "I can look it up for you if you would like, finding last month's records shouldn't be too difficult,"

"Find out what?" Gabriella complained, "I am here you know, what's going on?"

Troy moved to sit closer to her on the edge of the bed, taking her hands in his, "You know how I love that you cope well with stress?" He watched her nod before continuing, "Now I'm just all the more pleased that that is the case,"

"Why?" Gabriella asked as soon as he paused, "what aren't you telling me?"

He smiled, "Kirra's not going to be our little baby for much longer, which means, no more stressful situations for you,"

She frowned, piecing together what he had told her, it all made sense, why he couldn't seem to stop smiling, the question he'd asked her, she'd been sick for a while now, but she'd put it down to stress, it had to have been stress.

"What!" She exclaimed, intent on denying their claims as she pulled her hands out from his, unconsciously letting one fall to her stomach in a protective manner, "You mean I'm.... I'm.... but wouldn't I know? I would have known, I'm not that clueless, sure I'm a little late but that's the stress, it has to be, we only just decided,"

"I'd say the conception date is around mid-January," Doctor Kent informed her.

"No," she refused, although she knew it was possible, mid January was around the time Troy had taken Kirra to LA, they'd spent the week before he left together, taking advantage of the time her family spent with the girls, but still, believing what she was being told scared her, "I wasn't, I let Kieran take me to protect them, I didn't protect them from him if that's true, you're lying."

"shhhh," Troy comforted for the second time that day, "you didn't know, you were protecting the only two children you knew you had, it's not your fault,"

"I was meant to protect them, all of them," she insisted, clearly angry with herself, "I let my baby down, I don't care that I didn't know, I shouldn't have let him take me, I should have fought back, I'm a bad mother,"

"If you'd have fought back, one or both of you could have gotten hurt," he pointed out, massaging one of her shoulders while taking hold of one of her hands with his own free hand, "this way i've still got you, both of you, you are not a bad mother, you're brilliant,"

"But," she tried, stopping at the somewhat pained look on his face, he always had hated it when she blamed herself for things, she frowned, changing her words, "how long was I out? When can I go home?"

"A few hours," Troy answered her first question, silently relieved that she had stopped accusing herself of things she couldn't have prevented, "They want to keep you in overnight for observation, the police want to talk to you too, but I told them that they have to wait until you're up to it,"

"Are they here now?" she questioned curiously, "I can talk to them now,"

"They left a while ago, told the hospital to call them when you woke up," he responded, slightly worried at her lack of interest in her health, she hadn't asked if anything was actually wrong with her, she'd just changed the subject after finding out about the baby, "Chad's waiting outside though, followed the police here after they interviewed him, he was worried about you,"

"Did you tell him?" she questioned quickly, her eyes fixed on him.

"No, not yet," he answered, "Why?"

"Don't," she ordered, sighing at the look that appeared on his face, "I just want to keep it between us right now, January, it's still early days, I don't want to jinx it by telling everyone, not yet,"

"The girls?"

"We can tell them together, when the time comes," she reassured him, "but right now, I think it'll be good keeping it between us,"

"So you're ok?" he asked her, relief taking over his features, "you're not overwhelmed by this,"

"We decided, we said sometime in the next year," she reminded him, "I guess it just happened sooner rather than later, before we'd even decided, when you think about it,"

"When they told me," he admitted, "I thought the worst, that you hadn't told me because you didn't think you could trust me, they said they'd found out when you were last here and we just assumed you'd been told,"

"I wasn't," she reassured him, "If I had, I would have told you, and next time, I want to go back to normal, I don't want you telling me, I want to tell you,"

"Now you know how I felt," he smirked, "not an easy thing to digest is it, not unless it was planned,"

"I like to think I'm handling it better than you did," She responded, "I am, after all, as YOU always say, superior in every way,"

"Finally," he cheered, laughing at her statement, "she's accepted the truth,"

She stuck her tongue out at him, giggling herself, "You know, we are going to be so in over our heads this time next year, we'll be outnumbered,"

"Can't wait," Troy smiled, "A new adventure,"

"Maybe it's a boy," she suggested, watching as he raised his eyebrows, "I'm just saying, there's a chance,"

"How about," he began, taking both of her hands and kissing each of them, "you stop worrying about that and increase the chances the he OR she is healthy, that's all that matters, ok? I can live without a son, I'm not sure I'd be able to survive without you, if we do have a son, then great, but it doesn't matter, I just need you healthy, alive."

"I know, but..." she started, frowning as he interrupted.

"No buts, health first, everything else second."

"I guess this means I can't go back to work," she sighed, clearly disappointed, "I don't think they'll wait this time,"

"You could get any job you wanted," he pointed out, "especially after you've completed this law degree that I'M paying for, there's no rush to jump back into work, especially with work being stressful enough for you, it's not like we need the money, it can wait until you're ready,"

"I know," she frowned, "but I still don't like it, it's like, every time I try to go back to work, something happens that stops me, and out of those things, this is the only good one,"

"Wait a minute," he halted her, finally realising something she had said just moments before, "next time? You want more kids after this?"

"You don't?" she questioned, and he could tell by the look on her face that she hated the idea of this being their last child.

"Of course I do," he exclaimed truthfully, "I just thought that after everything, you wouldn't. But I couldn't think of anything in the world that could possibly be better than having a house full of mini you's,"

"They could always look like you," she smirked, "if you ask me, that would be so much better, I mean, have you seen yourself, compared to you I'm average,"

"Incorrect," he stated, moving his hand to her face and caressing her cheek, "it's actually the other way round, you are perfect, I actually don't deserve you, your dad told me, and your brother, and your sisters, give it a few years and Tamsin will be telling me how superior you are to me in every way, I don't want you ever calling yourself average again, because you are far from it, you're beautiful, and this..." he paused as he moved is hand to her still relatively flat stomach, "will make you even more beautiful, it also enables me to watch you all the time, and then tell you that I'm actually watching the baby when you complain,"

"You're loving this aren't you?" she asked, only partly sarcastically, now she'd warmed to the idea, she too, loved it.

"Always do," he commented, "plus, restricting your movement is going to make it easier for me to protect you,"

"Movement?" she pondered, before looking at him in horror, "no way are you making me stay in bed all day, I won't do it, it's not going to happen,"

"Doctor's orders," he insisted, smiling victoriously, "literally, he said because of the stress, it would be better if you were completely relaxed for a while, he suggested bed rest,"

"That'll just stress me out more," she replied, "If I don't know what's going on with everyone, I'll just get really annoyed, which really isn't good, so I have to get out of bed,"

"Cell phone, TV, radio, Tamsin," he listed, smiling as she pouted, "you can keep updated from bed, isn't that great,"

"You're not going to drop this are you?" Gabriella frowned, watching his smile, "seriously, I'm going to get so bored,"

"At least you'll be healthy," he pointed out, leaning down to kiss her on the forehead, "that's all I need to know, besides, i've been given the next few weeks off to make sure of it,"

"You should call Shar," she suddenly jumped up, panicked, "does she know we're here? Did you tell her why we need her to keep the girls?"

"I called her again, yes," he explained, smiling as she relaxed again, "the girls are fine, they baked some cookies, and were watching cartoons when I last checked, they'll probably be in bed now, Shar said she'll bring them here tomorrow, that way I don't have to leave you tonight and we can go straight home when you're released,"

"Good," she sighed, "It's good they'll be sleeping, they won't be so confused. They didn't eat the cookies did they? You did tell Shar what happens when Tamsin has any sugary, chocolaty or just plain unhealthy food so soon before bed?"

"Damn, I knew there was something I forgot," Troy laughed, although it was obvious he had not forgotten, just failed to mention it, "I'll tell her tomorrow,"

- - - -

"Tamsin Bolton get down from there," Sharpay ordered as the four year old continued jumping on the dining room table, "you have to go to sleep,"

"NOOOOO SLEEP," the child shouted, jumping onto a chair and then to the floor as she continued running through the house, "MORE COOKIES,"

"There aren't any more cookies," Sharpay lied, sighing as the four year old stopped and turned to her, "If you go to sleep now, we can make some cookies tomorrow,"

Tamsin glared at her, her childish features making the expression adorable.

Sharpay took the opportunity to approach her, but the child took off again, screaming as she went.

"Tamsin, come back here,"

"I WANT MY MOMMY,"

"Tamsin, come on, we're going to see mommy tomorrow," Sharpay tried, "if you go to sleep quick it'll be even sooner,"

"I WANT MOMMY NOW!"

"Tammy, you'll see mommy tomorrow, daddy too,"

"NOOOOOO,"

She screamed, once again running through the house, this time towards the kitchen.

"Tamsin, what are you doing?"

The four year old started opening any cupboard she could reach, pulling saucepans and anything else she could get her hands on to the floor.

"Stop it, Tammy,"

"NOOOOOO, I WANT MOMMY AND DADDY,"

She ran again, this time to the back door, pounding on it with her little hands, before sprinting off when it didn't open.

Sharpay found her minutes later jumping on the couch, the peanut-butter stained couch, leaving footprints on the fabric, of course, there'd been melted chocolate on the kitchen floor.

She screamed as she saw the woman's approach and immediately jumped off the couch heading towards the open window.

"Don't you dare!" Sharpay called, surprised by her own tone when Tamsin automatically stopped her advance towards it, "It's bedtime,"

Tamsin screamed again, causing to cries to sound from upstairs.

"Kirra's crying," Tamsin shouted, running back out of the room, jumping on the spot when she stopped in the hall and waiting for Sharpay to catch up, "you woke her up when you shouted,"

"I didn't shout," Sharpay denied, turning away from the four year old and heading up the stairs to soothe both Kirra and her son.

She picked up Justin before heading over to Kirra, stroking the little girl's hair when she reached her.

"It's ok, sweeties, go back to sleep," she spoke to both of them, "Tamsin was just being noisy, but it's ok, you're ok,"

She stayed there until both children were once again asleep, then checked on Jaelin before heading back downstairs, determined to get Tamsin in bed.

The child was no where around, she ran through the bottom floor of the house, calling her name, panic evident.

"What's going on?" Zeke questioned as he walked through the front door, Tamsin giggling hysterically in his arms.

"Where was she?" Sharpay asked, rushing over to them and running a hand through the child's hair.

"Running around the house, I saw her when I pulled up, just as she decided it'd be so much fun to try and jump in the pool," he explained, attempting to scold the child in a calm tone, "shouldn't she be in bed?"

"You want to try?" Sharpay questioned rhetorically, "She's jumped all over the dining room table, drawn on the walls, tried sliding down the banister, smeared peanut butter all over the couch, screamed at the top of her lungs, woken up Justin and Kirra and pulled all the coats off of their hooks, and that's just the start of it,"

"Oh no, Tamsin," Zeke gasped in mock horror, "Daddy will not be happy when he sees all the mess will he?"

Tamsin stopped laughing, her eyes widening as she shook her head no.

"How about we clean it all up?" He asked her, "and then we won't have to mention it to daddy and get him to come and see, will we?"

Tamsin shook her head again, letting him place her on the floor, she automatically ran towards the dining room.

"Cleaning!" Sharpay exclaimed in a whisper, "she has to go to bed, it's almost ten!"

"Exactly," he responded, beginning to follow the child, "she has to go to bed, with any luck, the cleaning will tire her out, I told you not to let them eat the cookies,"

"I didn't know it would do this," She insisted, "it's not as if I was told,"

"I hear it all the time from the guys," he informed her, "last time she had sugar before bed, she kept Troy up literally all night, he said she was pretty much climbing the walls, and if you ever wanted something to use against him, Gabs doesn't know, she slept through it and he was the one who gave Tammy the ice cream in the first place,"

"You'd better go help her clean before she 'cleans' the varnish of the table," Sharpay commented, noticing his pause in movement when he spoke, "That cost a fortune, and seriously, now I no, no more sugar, but if their parents find out, Gabs especially, this won't happen again, and honestly, I think they need this,"

"I'm on it," he told her, heading in the direction the child had gone in.

- - -

"Slow down," Zeke called as Tamsin raced through the hospital, "you don't even know where you're going,"

"I'm going to see mommy," Tamsin called back as she turned a corner, causing him to quicken his pace as much as a could while carrying Kirra.

He sighed to see her talking to a nurse, whom had lowered herself to the child's level.

"Uncle Zeke, she doesn't know where mommy is," Tamsin turned around to him, frowning.

"I know where mommy is," he explained to her, "that's what the nice lady downstairs told me," he took hold of Tamsin's hand as the nurse straightened up, he turned to her, "Sorry, she's just a little over excited,"

"It's ok," The woman replied, "I'm just glad she's not lost or anything,"

"Uncle Zeke, stop flirting, we have to go," Tamsin whined, making the nurse laugh as she tugged on his hand.

"Tamsin Bolton I am married," he reminded her, "and who taught you that word?"

"Daddy," Tamsin answered happily as they continued moving, "he told me that mommy likes him flirting with her, what does it mean?"

"I think you should ask daddy that one," Zeke smiled at her, her cheeky grin reminding him of his own children, whom he would be with after dropping the two off, "You should ask daddy, as soon as you see him, while mommy's there,"

Tamsin nodded, then let go of his hand after seeing her father at the end of the corridor, she ran in his direction, but spied her mother through the door behind him, so ran past him and in to her.

He followed her in, Zeke arriving with Kirra moments later, "You ok, Mommy?"

"I'm more than okay, princess," Gabriella answered truthfully, "and I'm going to be ok for a long long time,"

"Good," Tamsin evaluated before turning to her father, "Daddy? What does flirting mean? Because when you say it I don't know why,"

* * *

**Wooo, done, and hey, if you don't go on about me updating the wrong story, I'll totally re introduce the random rant next chapter, and it'll be exam style.**

**11 pages, and now I shall sleep.**

**Review!!! This really will be the last chapter until after my exams, which are actually over in 2 weeks, then I have 2 weeks off school because not everyone's exams will be over then, so no huge break.**


	52. Secrets?

**If you didn't notice, I changed my pen-name!**

**This took ages due to a lack of motivation, laziness, inspiration etc. but eventually I went over old reviews and got tons of inspiration, so thank you guys, how awesome were you all back then!!!**

**People kept saying how smart Tamsin is, but she doesn't seem it to be, even with this chapter, probably because I know four year olds who do talk like Tamsin is.**

**After this chapter there are only 8 proper chapters left, then the epilogue,which is already long.**

**I'm really not feeling inspired to write this, but I want to finish it, which is why I haven't put it on hiatus, so if you can help with the inspiration, or can even just harass me into updating, it'll be appreciated – all reviewers and those who PM me will get a preview of the next chapter of either this story or Making It Right, the next chapter of which I am about to start now.**

**Ok, a tinsy bit of randomness, I just got an email titled: **can seaweed help you lose weight?**Hmmm, I wonder, lol.**

* * *

Troy quickly turned from his daughter to his wife, hoping the latter had not heard the child's question. No such luck. Gabriella was looking at him, her eyebrows raised in disapproval.

He turned back to his daughter, whom was also watching him, "It's something that only mommy's and daddies do,"

"Like kissing?" Tamsin giggled at her own question.

"Yes, like kissing," he answered, "you're never allowed to do that Tammy,"

Tamsin scrunched her face up in confusion before turning and running to one of the chairs situated in the room and climbing onto it, clearly intent on watching the rest of the interactions.

Zeke walked closer to the bed and moved to hand Kirra to her mother, surprised when Troy stepped in the way and took the toddler off of him before he could.

"Seriously?" Gabriella asked, her face showing both amusement and annoyance.

"Yes," Her husband replied, "No risks,"

"Should I know what you're talking about?"Zeke questioned curiously.

"Um, she passed out," Troy covered, "don't want her holding Kirra in case it happens again, you know?"

"Oh, I get that," their friend replied, "I guess I'd be the same,"

Gabriella swung her legs around off of the bed, moving herself into a sitting position. She grinned at her husband as he showed his obvious disapproval at her actions, "when do I get out of here?"

"The doctor's coming to check and discharge any time in the next hour," Troy explained, still watching her warily, "you need to lay back down,"

"I'm fine," she argued, "I don't want to lay down,"

"Gabs," he sighed, running his free hand through his hair, "It's for your own good,"

"If I lay down now, I can go for a run later right?" she questioned, smiling innocently.

"Gabs, no," he insisted, walking closer to her, "you're going to be the death of me, you know that?"

"What about me, daddy?" Tamsin asked quickly, wanting to be involved, "Me too,"

"You and Kirra too, you're all stressful," he responded, smiling as she laughed happily in response, "looking after you three is a full time job, and then I have work on top of that,"

"You're funny, daddy," Tamsin continued giggling at her father's words, "I not stessful, you stessful,"

"Daddy is stressful," Gabriella agreed, smiling at her daughter, "Very stressful,"

"Picking on me again!"He exclaimed, happily watching the natural interactions between two of his girls, "At least Kirra's not, right sweetie?"

Kirra looked up at his face from her position in his arms, before grinning widely and reaching for his hair, pulling at it as soon as she could reach.

"Ok, you're all picking on me," he sighed playfully, "They're ganging up on me Zeke,"

"It's what girls do," Zeke replied, "see, I'm lucky, I'll always have Justin on my side,"

Troy glanced over at his wife, frowning at the look that appeared on her face, he knew she really wanted him to have a son, and he hated how much that affected her.

Her eyes met his, and he saw both the longing and the hope in them, causing him to mouth the words he'd repeated to her endlessly, "I don't care,"

She nodded to tell him that she knew, knowing they couldn't say these things aloud or someone may figure out what they'd decided to keep to themselves for a while.

"Lay back down," he ordered, laughing as the only response he got was her sticking her tongue out at him, "you're supposed to be resting,"

"I'm fine," she smiled glancing sideways at Zeke, nodding to answer his questioning gaze before watching him leave the room, "I don't need to rest,"

"Daddy said mommy," Tamsin pointed out, her small voice sounding serious, "If daddy say you rest, you have to rest,"

"Is that right, princess?" Gabriella questioned her daughter as the child watched her, "We have to do what daddy says?"

Tamsin nodded, "No,"

"Is that a yes or a no?" Gabriella continued to quiz her.

"It's both," the four year old answered, not seeing a problem with her answer, "mommy rest,"

"Go home," Kirra suddenly squealed, releasing her fathers hair as she watched his reaction.

"Soon, sweetie," he promised her, "as soon as the doctor says it's ok,"

Tamsin jumped up from the chair and walked to the still open door of the room, "MISTER DOCTOR,"

"Tammy, don't do that," Troy scolded, but he smiled when he saw that her shouting had led to the desired result, "you have to be quiet in hospitals,"

"Bolton," the doctor stated as he walked in the room, his eyes on the chart in front of him that he was clearly reading from, "I'll just need to check your blood pressure then you should be free to go,"

- - - -

The house was in chaos. Kirra was crying as loud as she could while Tamsin had the TV on too loud for it to be healthy and was also shouting herself. Troy was torn, if he tried to discipline his elder daughter, the younger one would somehow increase her volume, but as soon as he turned his attention on the two year old, the older girl would increase the volume of the TV and shout louder about what was happening on the screen.

"You want some help?" Gabriella called down the stairs to him just as he scooped up the younger child, "I don't mind,"

NO," he shouted to her in response, "YOU GO BACK TO BED,"

"But it's in the middle of the day," she complained as her footsteps were heard on the stairs, "Can't I at least make them some sandwiches?"

He frowned, settling Kirra down on the floor and flinching against the screams that followed before heading towards the stairs, catching his wife at the bottom and quickly lifting her up, carrying her back up the stairs.

"I said go back to bed," he spoke softly, "I can handle it,"

"It really sounds like you can handle it," she giggled, "I can barely hear myself think,"

"It's only until your blood pressure is completely normal," he reasoned, knowing his hardest task for the week would be keeping her in bed, "even the doctor said it's not as high as it was, just give it a few days at least, ok?"

She frowned, "just a couple of sandwiches?"

"No," he answered firmly, setting her down on their bed, "you are staying right here. If you're good I'll bring the girls up in a few hours and we can watch a movie,"

"Can't I rest downstairs?"

"Tomorrow," he compromised, "if you stay up here with no complaints for the rest of the day, you can come downstairs tomorrow as long as you promise that you will not get off of the couch,"

"I promise," she sighed reluctantly, pouting at him in an attempt to change his mind, "what would you do if I didn't anyway?"

"I'd call your mom," he admitted, grinning at the look of horror that appeared on her face, "you wouldn't want me to do that would you?"

"My mom!" she exclaimed, "she'd go crazy, I wouldn't even be able to breathe without her worrying that I'm dying, you haven't told her have you? You can't tell her, she'd be on the next flight,"

"No," he admitted, "but if you keep being bad and trying to get up, I'm going to have to tell her for your own good,"

She opened her mouth to reply but a shout from downstairs beat her to it.

"DADDY, YOU AND MOMMY AND ME AND KIRRA ARE ON TV,"

A look of horror crossed both of their faces, there was a legal agreement that the faces of their little girls would not be made public until they were eighteen, how could they be on TV?

"Go and check," Gabriella ordered, gesturing for him to go.

He quickly ran from the room, picking a still crying Kirra up as he reached the bottom of the stairs and headed towards Tamsin.

He rolled his eyes in irritation as he listened to the reporter on the screen.

"The reason for Mrs Bolton's hospital stay is currently unknown, but it is believed that she suffered some kind of a fall at around 4pm yesterday afternoon,"

His irritation turned to relief quickly though as the video clip that had obviously been what Tamsin was shouting about came back on screen. Tamsin and Kirra's faces had been blurred, making them unidentifiable, Tamsin had probably only known it was them because she remembered walking out of the hospital earlier in the day.

"I'm on TV daddy," Tamsin gushed excitedly, jumping up and down on the couch, "I'm on TV like you daddy,"

"Yes, you are aren't you?" he mock grinned at her, intent on convincing her that he shared her excitement, "Do you like being on TV?"

"Yes, Daddy," Tamsin answered nonchalantly, changing the channel as the news report changed, "Are Nana and Grampy coming back?"

"Why, princess?" he questioned curiously, she'd never mentioned his in laws coming to visit them before.

"Mommy's sick," she answered as if it was obvious, "Nana always tries to help when mommy's sick,"

"No, no, mommy's not sick princess,"

Tamsin looked at him disbelievingly, her eyes narrowed as she clearly believed he was lying to her, "then why is she in bed?"

"Mommy just needs to rest a bit," he assured his daughter, "she's ok, I promise,"

"The bad man won't take her again?" Tamsin continued, not seeing her father's change in demeanour after her question.

"No," he answered, trying to be soothing, "the bad man won't come back,"

"Kirra's hungry, daddy," Tamsin pointed out, finally mentioning her screaming sister, "it's lunch time,"

"Oh course," he agreed, "I'll go get you both something,"

He turned and began heading towards the kitchen, halting as Tamsin spoke once again.

"Ok, I love you daddy,"

He turned round again to face her, curious and surprised as to why she had said what she had, "I love you too, princess,"

"Mommy loves you more than I do," Tamsin explained, seemingly uncaring, but her latest sentence told him a lot, his daughter was feeling insecure again.

"I love mommy too," he assured her, "more than she'll ever know,"

"If you love mommy," Tamsin began, clearly confused, "why are you keeping her upstairs?"

"Mommy needs to rest, princess," he explained once again, " don't you think it's easier for her to rest upstairs?"

Tamsin nodded, "I'm hungry daddy,"

"Sandwich time then," he told her, carrying Kirra off towards the kitchen, not watching Tamsin as she crept up the stairs.

- -

"Mommy?" Tamsin whispered as she crept into her parents room.

"Hey," Gabriella greeted her daughter, gesturing for her to come and sit on the bed.

Tamsin sped across the floor and jumped excitedly up, eventually sitting at her mother's side.

"Daddy said you need to rest," Tamsin stated, watching the older woman for a reaction.

"Daddy's right," Gabriella confirmed "I do need to rest,"

"I need to rest too," Tamsin decided, attempting to cuddle herself into her mother's side, "And Kirra, it's nap time,"

Gabriella glanced at the clock as she wrapped an arm around her daughter, frowning when she saw that the child was right, Kirra should be asleep right at that moment, she was crying because she was tired, not because she was hungry.

"I think we'll let daddy figure out that Kirra's tired," she told Tamsin, whom was watching her intently, admiration in her gaze, "don't you think,

Tamsin nodded, before pausing for thought and starting a new conversation, "I'm glad you're my mommy, Sophie says that she can't pretend to be sick because her mommy's a doctor, but I can because you're not a doctor,"

"No you can't Tammy," Gabriella laughed at the child's innocence, "no pretending to be sick,"

"You do" Tamsin stated, giggling as she said it, "Auntie Isobel said that you pretend to be sick and daddy goes all fussy,"

"Sweetie," Gabriella decided to explain, "I'm not pretending to be sick when that happens, I'm just not as sick as daddy thinks I am,"

"Can I do that?" Tamsin questioned.

"Only to daddy,"

"Ok,"

"What's your daddy doing?" Gabriella asked the child, eager to gain some knowledge as to what was going on downstairs.

"Making sandwiches," Tamsin sighed, "he said he loves you mommy,"

Gabriella smiled as the room went quiet, hearing footsteps on the stairs.

"There you are!" Troy sighed as he walked into the room, seeing Tamsin curled up at her mother's side, "You should have told me you were coming up here princess, you had me all worried,"

Kirra was squirming and crying in his arms as he walked closer to them, setting her down on the bed a short distance from his wife.

"Are we having lunch up here, Tammy?" He questioned his elder child while frantically preventing the younger one from accidentally hitting her mother in her rage.

Tamsin nodded, "Then nap time,"

He smiled in agreement, "Yes, then nap time,"

"For me and for Kirra and for you and for mommy," Tamsin insisted, seriousness in her eyes, "nap time,"

"Don't you think daddy's too big for a nap?"

"Nooooo,"

"Is mommy too big for a nap?"

"Mommy resting,"

Troy laughed at her matter of fact tone, knowing if he continued to question the four year old, she too would lash out, and he couldn't risk that while she was so close to her mother.

"Do you want your sandwich up here, Tammy?" he asked her, smiling as she nodded her head vigourously without uncurling herself from her mother's side, "Okay,"

He quickly left the room, returning in moments with a plate of sandwiches.

"Turkey," he told them, pointing to one corner of the plate, before moving it to hover over another, much smaller group of sandwiches, "Jam for Kirra," he moved his finger to another corner, "Cheese,"

"I want cheese!"Tamsin exclaimed, just as he'd predicted she would, "It's my favourite, daddy,"

He smiled, picking up one of the cheese sandwiches and passing it to her, announcing "this is the first and last time that we're going to have lunch in mommy and daddy's room, ok?"

Tamsin gave a small nod, the grin on her face showing that she didn't intend to follow the rule he'd just set even if she had believed him.

- - - -

".... and daddy won't let mommy stand up, and when she wants to go somewhere, he carries her, and she tells him he's silly and it's really funny,"

Taylor glanced questioningly at her friend, whom was lying on the opposite couch.

"Tammy, sweetie," the woman spoke directly to her daughter, "how about you take Sophie upstairs, you can show her your new doll,"

Tamsin jumped up in excitement at the mention of the toy her father had purchased for her that morning after his wife had finally convinced him that she would not get up while he was gone.

"It's got a purple dress, Sophie!" Tamsin exclaimed, grabbing the five year old's hand as they left the room speedily, clearly forgetting the question that had been previously asked.

Gabriella waited until the girls were upstairs before addressing her friend, "Chad told you what happened?" Taylor nodded, not wanting to interrupt, "Troy's got really protective since then, the doctor told him my blood pressure was abnormally high, I told him that they wouldn't have released me if it hadn't gone down enough, but he's still worried, he keeps asking if he should call our family doctor to get him to come and check it again,"

"Typical," Taylor smiled, "He was the same when you were pregnant, both times, remember, he would've wrapped you up in cotton wool if you'd of let him,"

"You know what he admitted last night?" Gabriella stated, more than asked, "He told me when I first told him about Tamsin, he wasn't sure how to feel, he wasn't sure that he liked the idea of sharing me,"

"He had had you to his self for 7 years," her friend pointed out, "I guess at that point it was natural that he didn't want to share you, besides, look at him now, I honestly don't believe that he remembers much of life before those girls,"

"He always says he doesn't remember much before me," Gabriella smiled as she recalled the amount of times he had told her that, "literally every time I ask him what he was like before he met me, he says he can't remember much from before me,"

"He was a player, "Taylor stated, frowning as she noticed the look on her friends face change before noticing that that was probably the wrong thing to say, "Not like that, he didn't lie, you were his first, Chad told me he was never with anyone like that before you," the other woman settled a little, "he just never had a steady girlfriend, he had a new girl on his arm every day, never the same one, you changed him for the better," she continued frowning as her friend's only response was a weak smile, "Maybe I shouldn't have told you that,"

Gabriella bit her lip, "It's okay,"

Taylor signed disbelievingly, "Look Gabs, he loves you, think of it this way, he never had a serious relationship with anyone before you, what does that tell you about how he felt about you back then? You're the only person he's ever been serious, you're the only girl he's ever loved, and from the way he goes all protective on you, it's seriously looking like it's going to stay that way,"

Taylor relaxed her body as she saw a smile grace the other woman's face, she'd gotten her to calm down by talking about the meanings in his actions.

"Tell me more," Gabriella demanded, "I just feel like I missed out on so much, I feel like i've known him my whole life, but there's so much that I don't know from before I met him that he doesn't talk about,"

"You'd be better off asking Chad," Taylor pointed out before continuing to tell her friend what she knew, "When we were in middle school, he was incredibly shy, he hung around his cousin Amber a lot, it wasn't until she moved that he stared mixing with the other kids, her leaving kind of forced him into it. He was always good at art, used to draw people all the time, that stopped when his dad got him playing basketball all the time, the game was just a hobby until middle school, that's when it got serious. His mom used to have this cat.."

"Chipper," Gabriella interrupted, smiling, "she showed me the pictures,"

Taylor smiled, "He knew Chad in elementary school, but they didn't really become best friends until middle school, it was actually Chad that convinced him girls weren't gross. He got onto the team in freshman year high school, and it went to his head, that's all I got,"

"Really?" Gabriella feigned disappointment, "No nicknames I can annoy him with, no bad habits, none!"

"Ask Chad!" Taylor insisted, laughing at her friend's eagerness, "I don't get why he didn't tell you most of this, well, other than the player part, I get why he didn't tell you that. Why are you asking me this now anyway?"

Gabriella ignored her friend's question, instead pondering one of her own, "will he still love me when I'm fat again?"

"Gabs?"

"Did I say that out loud?"

"Yup," Taylor narrowed her eyes at the grimace that appeared on her friend's face, "Gabs, what do you mean by 'when you're fat again'?"

"It's nothing," Gabriella attempted.

"Gabs?" Taylor asked, "You're acting really weird, and now you're talking about getting fat, I think I can take a pretty good guess about what's going on with you, you'd have said if you were planning on changing your diet and I am training to be a doctor,"

Gabriella sighed, she hadn't thought of that, Taylor was a doctor in training, of course she'd notice what was going on straight away, she already knew all of the signs through education and experience.

"We weren't going to tell anyone yet," Gabriella admitted, biting her lip gently, "we wanted to wait a few weeks,"

"So you are?"

She nodded, "and i've felt guilty ever since I found out,"

"Why?"

"I didn't protect my baby, Tay," Gabriella exclaimed, shocking her friend with her small outburst, "Troy keeps telling me that I didn't know, but that doesn't make it okay, I didn't protect my baby,"

"I wish I could say that I understand, but I don't," Taylor admitted, "Nothing like that has ever happened to me, but doesn't feeling guilty about it just show what a great mother you are, you couldn't have stopped it, we're all just glad that we've still got you,"

"Kieran wouldn't have hurt me," Gabriella blurted out, "Sick though he is there is a part of him that loves me, I don't think he's well, Tay, his warped mind is stopping him from figuring out that if he loved me, he'd let me go,"

"The police would have ordered a psych consult when they took him in," Taylor pointed out, " not that it matters, if he ever gets out, Troy'll make sure that you're long gone,"

"He gives up way too much for me," Gabriella sighed, "The opportunity to have a normal college experiences, you know, with dating and that, living with his friends like normal college students do, games when he's worried about me, a team trip to Hawaii when I told him I was pregnant with Tamsin..."

"Gabs," Taylor interrupted, "he chose to do all that stuff, he didn't want to date in college, Chad said he never even looked at other girls, despite how hard they were trying, he'd been talking about asking you to move in with him for months before he actually did it, he even asked me for advice as to how to ask you, he was really nervous, as he says to Chad 'any excuse to see his angel' do you know for sure that he's actually worried about you when he misses games, and as for the Hawaii trip, he was freaking out about leaving you anyway, besides, it was his first child, he didn't want to miss any of it,"

"He missed a great trip,"

"That he didn't want to go on in the first place! He'd been looking for ways to get out of it for weeks. You have to accept it Gabs, after everything that's happened to you, with Kevin and Kieran, he's always going to be overprotective,"

"It can be too much sometimes," Gabriella frowned, "take now for example, he's refusing to let me even stand up, would walking downstairs in the morning and upstairs at night really be THAT bad for my health,"

"That's not fair," her friend responded, verbally scolding her slightly, clearly recalling the instructions the man in question had given her, "he's only following doctors orders, he's trying to look after you, you and the baby, and you do make that difficult for him sometimes, it's better he's like this than ignoring you, don't you think?"

Gabriella nodded, "I guess, but that doesn't make it any less annoying,"

"Stop thinking of it as annoying, and then maybe it won't be annoying,"

- - - -

"Dude, stop smiling, it's creepy," Chad informed his friend as they walked back to the locker room, "what's got you so happy anyway?"

"Life," Troy answered, trying to remain evasive, "figuring out what I need,"

"Has what you need got anything to do with who you were on the phone to when you got here?"

"Yes," Troy admitted, seriousness overtaking him for the first time since the call"It was my mom, I've finally admitted to myself that I need help, I can't look after her on my own, I thought I could but now she's passing out on me and refusing to stay in bed for her own health while the girls are doing all they can to be stressful, my mom, well, she's coming back, I asked her to come, one of us can always be with her this way, plus, we won't be living on takeaways while I'm refusing to let Gabs cook,"

"You know she's not gonna like that, right?" Chad pointed out. "She's gonna hate that you've done this, Tay and I could help, you know."

"I know," he responded. "But my mom will be better for her, no offence, but she's not looking after herself and it's not just her she has to worry about anymore, my mom, she's more demanding than you guys."

"Did your mom ever tell you what happened that time we were away for a few days a few months before Kirra was born?" Chad quizzed. "Crazy times, dude."

"No." Troy answered, intrigued, "she didn't, what happened?"

"One afternoon when Tay and Soph were there, your mom and Gabs had a huge bust up." Chad informed him, a smirk on his face, "turned out, Gab wanted to clean the house, top to bottom, including polishing, and your mom wouldn't let her." he watched as Troy frowned, "But hey, leaving them alone won't be so bad this time, they were only fighting because you'd told your mom to look after her and she was hormonal, not as if she'll be like that this time."

Troy ran a hand through his hair as his friend darted off ahead of him, "great."

- - -

Troy was almost knocked down as he entered his house, but he responded to the shock by dropping the bag in his hand and picking up both Tamsin and Sophie, carrying them both into the Living room and smiling at his wife, fast asleep on the couch.

"How long has she been asleep for?" He questioned, turning to the other woman in the room.

"About an hour." Taylor responded, "she was exhausted, even though I wouldn't let her chase those two around the house, she's pissed at me because of that, but considering it's your fault her hormones are everywhere, I won't blame her,"

"She told you?"

"No," Taylor admitted, "I'm trained to spot these things, and she didn't deny it when I asked, congratulations daddy,"

He smiled momentarily before hearing Tamsin's distinct voice, "Kirra's gonna get out, daddy,"

It was her words that reminded him that he had left the front door open, causing him to quickly place the two girls on the floor and sprint back towards the front door, finding Kirra with one foot already out of it.

Quickly scooping her up in his arms, closing the door despite her protests, he spoke to her, "my life was easier before you could walk, you know,"

She continued squealing, even when Taylor took her out of his arms, heading upstairs with her shortly after informing him that the two year old hadn't yet had her nap.

"Kirra naughty, daddy," Tamsin responded to the situation, "bad Kirra, is she not allowed ice cream after dinner now?"

He knelt down on the floor, bringing their eyes level as he spoke to her, "you wouldn't do that, would you Tammy?"

She shook her head, "It's very very bad out there, cos there are cars and big bad doggies that aren't like Izzie and Ozzie, and bugs that bite you,"

"And bad people," Sophie put in, involving herself in the conversation, "daddy says there's bad people outside so I'm only allowed out with mommy or him or Auntie Gabi or Uncle Troy or Grandpa,"

"That's right, Sophie," Troy praised, "there are bad people outside, and there are lots of dangerous things like cars too Tammy, so it's better to stay inside unless there's a grown up with you,"

"Daddy, why's mommy sleeping in the day?" Tamsin questioned, clearly having been worried for a while, "It only Kirra and sometimes me that sleep in the day,"

"Mommy's ok princess, she's just tired," he assured his daughter, watching as Sophie took that moment to go and find her own mother, "can I tell you a secret?"

Tamsin nodded vigourously, "Yeah,"

"Grandma's coming back to stay with us for a while," he told the four year old, "she told daddy she misses her favourite three girls AND me."

"Grandma make mommy stop sleeping in the day?" Tamsin asked, making it obvious to him that the child was torn between excitement and worry, "I don't want mommy to be sick,"

"Mommy is far from sick, princess," he insisted, pulling her into his arms to give her a reassuring hug, "what's going on with mommy has made both her and daddy very happy,"

Tamsin's frown remained, she was confused, "mommy happy?"

"Mommy's very happy," he decided to explain, "she's just going to be very tired for a while, and she won't be able to pick you up,"

Tamsin shrugged before making a decision, "Grandma doesn't miss you daddy, just me and Kirra and mommy."

"Ok," he laughed, watching as she ran from his arms and headed up the stairs after her friend.

He stood up after she left, approaching his wife with a smile on his face, kneeling down beside her, he brushed some hair behind her ear before gently kissing her on the forehead, contenting himself solely by watching her.

* * *

**Review!!!!!!! (and go read "The Cobra" by Hazierox, I'm co-writing it, and IMO, it's the best thing i've ever written, and I may try and make Making It Right more like it)**


	53. Calls

**Ok, here's the deal. This is short because it's not finished (kinda obvious when you get to the end). I wasn't going to post it today, but, fate has intervened. My laptop (which I am currently using), has to go in for repair (even though it is not broken). I'm not happy about this, the laptop itself is fine, it's just the power cord/ charger (whatever you call it where you are) that isn't working, but the shop I got it from is insisting that it won't do anything until it sees the WHOLE laptop. Stupid, huh. My thought's exactly. So, anyway, I finished the part I currently had, and the next update will be, whenever I get my laptop back.**

* * *

Troy smiled at the sight of his wife as she carelessly dusted around ornaments while singing along to the radio. Slowly he approached her, placing a hand on her shoulder, "you should be resting."

"But the doctor said..." she began to complain, stopping as he chuckled in response.

"Just slow down a bit, ok?" He asked, still smiling at her enthusiasm. "The doctor said you didn't have to stay on bed rest, but he also said take it easy." She nodded reluctantly, but weakened when he kissed her lightly, "where are mom and the girls?"

"At the park." Gabriella answered nonchalantly, pulling away from him and sitting down on the couch. "Tamsin was hassling me about it, but Lucy was never going to let me go." She looked at him pointedly. "Seems like someone's been telling her I need to be wrapped in cotton wool."

"You can't tell me that you're surprised she's like this." He answered, sitting down next to her, allowing her to snuggle into him. "She's helping me to look after you to look after her grandchild."

"I thought she'd be mad." Gabriella admitted, hiding her face in his shoulder. "When we told her... I mean."

_Flashback_

"_Who's at the door?" Gabriella called to her husband, frowning when he didn't answer, "If it was a serial killer, please tell me so I can get the girls out." She sighed after gaining no response and got up from where she was sitting, heading towards the door herself, "Troy?"_

"_What have I told you?" He asked when he saw her standing in the doorway to the living room, he turned to the person at the door, "come in." Gabriella scowled at him playfully as he lifted her up in his arms, carrying her back to the couch as he saw the need to repeat the thing he'd been saying for days. "You are not allowed to get up. Stop it."_

_As he placed her back down she turned to the person that had followed them in, and was surprised to see her mother in law standing there. "Lucy? What are you doing here?"_

"_Didn't Troy tell you?" She questioned. "He called me, he said you needed help."_

"_Yes!" Gabriella exclaimed, pausing as she thought before explaining. "Not yes he told me, yes I do need help, he won't let me move, it's annoying. Tell him I'm not gonna die if I walk down the stairs in the mornings, and that I won't spontaneously combust if I pick Kirra up."_

"_Gabs." Troy sighed, kneeling down beside her. "You know what the doctor said. You have to rest."_

"_Why does she have to rest, Troy?" Lucille questioned. "I know she was at the hospital, it was all over the tabloids, but I figured you'd tell me if it was serious." Turning to Gabriella, her eyes full of concern, she continued, "You're okay, aren't you?"_

"_Mom." Troy interrupted. "She's perfectly fine, she's..." He looked to his wife to see if it was ok to say anything._

_Gabriella smiled, "I'm pregnant."_

_Lucille gasped, before smiling widely, "That's wonderful news, you wait till I tell Jack."_

"_Mom." Troy interrupted again. "We're keeping it quiet for now, we haven't even told Gabi's parents yet."_

"_Why would you keep it quiet?" Lucille quizzed, her confusion mingled with excitement."This is wonderful."_

_Troy looked to his wife, realising he himself didn't know fully why she wanted to keep it quiet. She had looked down, avoiding the gaze of both him and his mother. "Gabs?"_

"_What if I..."_

"_No." He interrupted firmly, reading her thoughts. "Don't even think that, you're both going to be fine."_

_Gabriella sighed, "You should tell them, my parents, I mean, then talk to your boss, we'll have to make it public soon anyway."_

_End Flashback_

"Why would she have been mad?" Troy queried. "She loves having grandchildren."

"Well, it is awkward, isn't it." Gabriella stated, frowning. "How can she even stand to look at me, knowing what I do with you?"

He chuckled. "Gabs, my mom knew we did that long before we had the kids, she was one of the people that was too smart to know we weren't actually studying during our 'study dates' at the end of senior year."

"I'm serious, Troy." She insisted. "It's not just that. She always believed in waiting to have kids until you've lived a little, we're not even thirty yet and we're already on baby number 3, how can she not hate me? I ruined your life. How can you not hate me?"

He sighed. He'd been wondering how long it would take for the irrationality to kick in. "I love you." He assured her, hugging her. "You haven't ruined my life. If anything, you've made it better. You know I hate it when you feel like this."

"I know." She nodded, pulling out of his embrace. "I'm sorry."

"No apologising." He forbade, taking hold of her hand and kissing it. "I hated you apologising in high school and I still hate it now."

"Ten year Reunion sometime next year." She pondered, turning to look down at their entwined hands. "Do you think we'll go?"

"If you sit back down right now, we'll definitely go."

She rolled her eyes, settling back into his arms, smiling at the instant security. "You're way too protective."

He shook his head, chuckling at the words she so often repeated, "Nope."

"You still got a team of ninja warriors patrolling the area?"

"They're not ninja warriors!" He defended, before realising that he'd admitted to her that they were still there. "Not that there is anyone."

"So that guy over there in that car, the red one, he's been parked there all day for the hell of it?" she queried, gesturing out of the window, "and the guy that followed your mom and the girls to the park, should I be worried about him?"

"Busted." He muttered to himself, kissing her lightly before continuing. "I'm sorry, I know I said I'd get rid of them as soon as Kieran was locked up, but I like knowing they're there, knowing that it's near impossible for anyone to get to you when I'm not here."

"I'm kinda getting used to them being around." She admitted, biting her lip as she studied his smug reaction. "So if it really means that much to you, they can stay, but please, tell them that I know, I can make them lunch or something."

"By I could make them lunch." He answered, his tone stern. "You do mean that my mom could make them lunch."

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever makes you feel better."

"If that's the case, you'd better get back into bed right now." He told her. "That's what would make me feel better."

She shook her head defiantly. "I think I should make dinner."

"I think you should sit down." He frowned as her expression changed, holding her closer in his grip. "Hey, hey, don't cry, I'm just trying to look after you. You can cook with my mom if you want to."

"I'm sorry." She coughed, wiping her eyes.

"It was my fault." He pointed out, placing a hand on her stomach. "Be nice to mommy, baby."

He smiled as he heard his wife sigh before speaking to him. "I can't believe you're talking to our baby already."

"I can't believe that I didn't notice these hormonal changes weeks ago." He answered, moving her back a bit as he studied her. "I guess I just put it down to everything that has happened."

She nodded, moving her head back to the crook of his neck. "Probably." She shifted her weight slightly before speaking again. "You're not allowed to move now."

He smiled. "Okay."

- - - -

Troy looked up as he heard the front door open, smiling as his elder daughter ran into the room, signalling to her to be quiet.

"Why's mommy sleeping again, daddy?" Tamsin whispered curiously. "Is she still okay?"

"Mommy's fine princess." He answered, looked round to see his mother standing in the doorway, Kirra standing at her side. "Tammy, can you and Kirra go play in your room?"

Tamsin narrowed her eyes but nodded and walked over to her sister, taking her hand and leading her upstairs.

"She asleep again?" His mother asked as soon as the girls had gone.

He nodded. "She was up all night being sick. I hate that I can't do anything to stop it."

"The sickness won't be for much longer." Lucille pointed out. "Did you not notice that she was sick quite a bit before the hospital."

"I thought she was scared." He admitted. "I thought she was sick because she was getting herself so worked up about Kieran it was making her ill. It made me hate him more."

"She was never this sick with the girls." He pondered to aloud. "Maybe the stress is having some effect."

"Or maybe.." Lucille began.

"Don't go there, mom." Troy warned. "Especially not with her, I don't want her thinking about that, she's already more upset about it than she's letting on."

"Hey, if this one's a girl, just remind her that it's your fault." Lucille joked. "Technically it is."

"I don't care what it is mom." He continued, overlooking the attempt at humour. "All I care about is that he or she is healthy. Whether it's a boy or a girl it's still my baby."

"I know." She assured him. "But if things are different this time..."

"Just don't get her thinking that." He warned, planing a soft kiss on his sleeping wife's forehead. "I don't need her stressed."

- - - -

"London?" Troy spoke into the phone, frowning as he glanced through the dining room door at his oblivious family. "I can't go anywhere right now, Mitchell. I can't go." He frowned as his boss continued ranting down the phone. "Yeah, I get that it's important, but my family are more important." Rolling his eyes he glanced back into the dining room to see his mother trying to settle Tamsin at the table. "No, Mitchell, you don't get it," his whispering was harsh. "She was abducted by a nut job, and then when I get her back she passes out on me, I can't even consider leaving her right now." He sighed, listening to the other man's protests and negotiations. "She can't come, Mitchell, I don't want her flying in her condition." He felt relief when the man stopped trying to convince him. "Thanks, maybe one of the other guys could go?"

It was mere minutes later that the phone rang again, and he jumped back up from the table, fully expecting it to be Mitchell again.

"Hello?" He spoke into the receiver, frowning when no answer came. "Hello?" The sound of the dial tone filled his ears, prompting him to put the phone down and head back to his family.

"Who was it?" Gabriella asked, smiling at him as he sat down.

"No idea." He admitted, "whoever it was hung up."

- - - -

"Another hang up?" Gabriella questioned as her husband returned to the living room hours later.

He nodded, groaning in frustration when the phone began ringing again and beginning to make his way out of the room.

"Troy." His mother stopped him. "I'll get it."

He caught on immediately, but didn't really want to think about who could possibly be calling that wouldn't speak to him.

He followed his mother out, heard her speak "Hello?" softly into the receiver, heard the reply on the other end as clear as he would have if he had answered it.

"Gabriella?"

His mother glanced at him, he nodded.

"Yes." Lucille replied, "May I ask who I'm speaking to?"

"Don't hang up sweetie, okay?" The man asked. "It's me, it's Kevin."

Troy felt his fists clench, his teeth grinding together, saw the shock in his mother's eyes, and glanced back through the door he had just come through to see the curiosity and confusion in his wife's, but he knew he couldn't tell her, he couldn't scare her like that.

"Salesman." He mouthed over to her before turning back to his mother and nodding to get her to continue.

"What do you want?" she quizzed the man on the other end of the line.

"I want to see you." Came the reply. "You've always been like a daughter to me, I miss you."

"I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Gabriella, come on." Kevin responded, "five minutes, that's all I want. I need to know, it was all over the news, did Kieran hurt you? Please, meet with me."

Troy had had enough, he lunged for the phone, taking it from his mother and quickly heading upstairs before growling down the line. "My wife is not even going to talk to you, let alone see you, not now, not ever. Don't call here again."

He hung up before sitting down on the floor, knowing he had to calm himself or his wife would ask questions.

Gathering his thoughts, he headed downstairs, shaking his head at his mother in response to her questioning look.

* * *

**Ok, so, as mentioned, next update will be after I get my laptop back, and also after I have updated MIR. This shortened chapter will probably lead to the next chapter being longer.**

**Review, remember, all reviewers get a preview of the next chapter. (sorry about the one's that reviewed last chapter, I would have sent it, but yesterday I didn't know I wasn't going to have my laptop to actually finish the chapter, so I never really chose a preview part.)**


	54. Relative

**OK, the loss of laptop put me behind, so this was written along with the latest MIR chapter (which may or may not already be up- lets go with not, although it is almost done) and the re-write of the IP epilogue, which I completely lost due to the external hardrive that I had everything on crashing (good thing that the epilogue was the only unfinished chapter and therefore the only one not already up). It was also a very good thing that the most amazing reviewer on the planet, as given by previous chapters (seriously, this title has been earned), had a preview of the epilogue, so I didn't lose all of it, just most of it.**

**This chapter changes where I was originally going, I was going to go with the whole 'keeping their private life private for as long as possible' but then I considered his status and her recent abduction and realised that her every move would be being watched, so it didn't really make sense for them to try and hide everything – they're smart people, they'd know how much they can get away with.**

**This story is almost over, due to lack of reviews I've decided to shorten it, so instead of having 60 chapters and then adding the parts of the epilogue, the epilogue will be chapters 59 and 60, maybe sooner, depending on how few chapters I can squeeze what's left in to.**

**Getting this up was a bit of a mission, because fanfiction won't let me upload documents (i've tried with this, the incomplete MIR, and the oneshot i posted a few weeks ago), i keep getting some error message, so i copied and pasted the whole thing into a document that was already up here (the oneshot), don't know what i'll do if it isn't fixed when that document goes, but, because of this issue, i'm going to try and speed up finishing the latest MIR chapter so it's possible to do the same with that.**

* * *

Gabriella tugged at the hem of her shirt nervously, glancing over at Kirra, sitting calmly next to her in a pale purple dress, her white tights still unspoilt.

"Mommy." Tamsin shouted excitedly, running into the room. "Those men have cameras!"

"I know." Gabriella smiled, trying to match the four year old's excitement. "Come sit with your sister, okay? Mommy will be back very soon."

Tamsin nodded, jumping up on the other side of her sister. "Do I look pretty, mommy?"

Gabriella surveyed her elder daughter as she stood up, smiling at the outfit she'd allowed her daughter to choose for herself, the pale pink gypsy skirt, a gift from Sharpay, successfully matched with a plain white t-shirt. "You look perfect, baby."

She quickly left the room, grateful that her mother-in-law was just entering it as she did, the last thing she wanted was the girls alone while the house was full of strangers.

She found her husband in their bedroom, rehearsing the responses his publicist had told him to give. There was only so much they were willing to make public, and he needed, in his short answers, to make everyone certain that he wouldn't be addressing these particular aspects of his life in such detail ever again.

"Does it usually take this long?" She interrupted, giving a weak smile at the look of pride that crossed his face every time he saw her.

"Setting up?" He queried, continuing as she nodded. "Yeah, that's pretty normal, don't worry, okay?" He approached her, placing his hands comfortingly on her shoulders. "You're going to do great. You always do. Think of it as another court hearing. Just another court hearing."

He pressed his lips to her forehead as she sighed and responded. "But it's not just another court hearing, Troy. That I would be able to handle. This is an interview, something that you do all the time, and I barely ever do, have never done in this context. Why do your bosses want us to talk so bad? Why can't we just keep quiet? About the baby, about Kieran, why do we have to tell anyone any of it?"

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly to him. "I'm gonna be there the whole time. I'm not going anywhere. You'll be okay. We can't keep quiet, angel. Especially about the baby, you'll be showing soon, and then there'd be rumours and that would stress you out even more than this. You have no idea how much I wish you didn't have to do this. How much I wish we could still keep the girls away from the media, but we have to. I don't want to make you do this, I don't want the girls involved, but my bosses said that if the public don't see all three of you soon, then all sorts of crazy stuff will come out, and there will always be someone who believes it."

"What if I mess up?" She was frowning, clearly worried. "What if the kids get upset or hungry or bored?"

"You are not going to mess up." He stated firmly. "If the kids get upset, I'll stop the whole thing. If they get hungry we can take a break. If they're bored my mom would be more than happy to take them out and bring them back in time for the shoot."

"What if the camera flashes scare them?"

"Gabs, angel, it'll be fine. We'll be fine. If you want to stop, just squeeze my hand. If the girls want to stop they'll make sure we know about it." He reassured her, eventually feeling her settle down. "You ready?"

- - - -

"MOMMY, MOMMY, MOMMY."Tamsin shouted through the house, speeding up the stairs and bursting through the door to her parents room. "MOMMY."

Gabriella yawned, sitting up in bed, aware of her husband's arm remaining protectively draped over her even as he slept.

"What is it, baby?" She asked curiously as her daughter jumped onto the bed, waving something in her face. "What's that?"

"Mommy, I'm on it." Tamsin exclaimed. "Me and Kirra and you and daddy and grandma."

Gabriella sighed, taking what she now clearly saw as a magazine out of her daughters hands, glancing nervously at the cover, reading the words _At Home With The Bolton's_ accompanied by a family portrait that had been taken soon after the interview.

She had to admit it was a good picture, one that she'd already been given a copy of, along with the rest of the photo's that had been taken that day. Tamsin was sitting on her right, a huge grin on her face, ignoring Gabriella's protective arm around her, her husband was to her left, Kirra sitting on his lap, seemingly oblivious to the camera, his arm was around her shoulders, her free hand on her stomach, something that she hadn't been aware of before seeing the picture. Lucille had been standing behind them, following directions as given, she too, had been out of her element.

Frowning, she opened the magazine, turning to the pages of the article and reading the introduction, sighing at the general background on her husband's career that she already knew, before moving down to the interview itself, anxious to see which questions had been included.

"What does it say, mommy?" Tamsin quizzed eagerly. "Does it say that I tell you off when you fight?"

Gabriella scanned the page, recalling some of the printed words as her own.

_Flashback_

_Watching her husband answer questions with such charm almost enchanted Gabriella, she was amazed by how smoothly he pulled it off, only answering what he wanted to, edging around tougher topics, but his performance made her nervous for her own._

"_So, Gabriella." The interviewer finally called her. "What's it like being married to someone as big as Troy?"_

_She managed to hold back her laughter at the question. "I don't really see him as a big star." She admitted. "To me he's just my husband, the man I fell in love with in high school, the father of my children. My soul mate."_

"_Sweet." The woman commented genuinely. "It must bother you though, having all these camera's following you when you go out, when you're not the one in the spotlight."_

"_I don't complain about it. I knew what I was letting myself in for when we got together, I knew he wanted to do this, I guess I kind of prepared myself for it."_

"_You don't worry about how your children cope with the pressure of the public eye?"_

"_I always worry." She responded. "But we try and protect the kids from the media as much as we can."_

"_Worry isn't exactly rare in this family. "Troy cut in, shooting a smile at the interviewer, then chuckling at the cheer that erupted from the playroom. "I think Tamsin's winning." _

_Both of them had noticed the woman's disappointment when Lucille took the girls out of the room for the duration of the interview, but they had decided when they had agreed to do the interview that they'd let them use a few pictures of the girls, but there was no way they were going to be talking to them._

_Troy continued when the woman failed to ask another question quick enough. "After everything that's happened since I met this one, you can't blame me for worrying."_

"_She gives you a lot of reasons to worry?"_

"_More like the people around her do." He sighed. "She hates it, but it's why I try and restrict who goes near her and the kids. I like to judge people before I let them near her. She doesn't say that I worry too much as much as she did before though."_

_End Flashback_

Gabriella pondered her daughter's words, recalling the question she'd been asked about if they ever fought, she'd simply replied that Tamsin would tell them off if they did, so they avoid it if they can.

It moved naturally onto the topic of the baby, and the interviewer had been nice enough to not linger on questions about Kieran and the abduction, something that she was eternally grateful for.

Finishing the article, she put the magazine down on the bed, feeling the tears prick in her eyes and quickly gesturing to Tamsin, telling her to leave the room. She didn't need her daughter seeing her cry.

She tried to sob quietly, but it didn't take long for her husband to wake up as a result, his concern pulling him immediately out of a groggy state.

He sat up, wrapping his arms properly around her. " What's wrong? Why are you crying?"

"I don't know." Gabriella sobbed in defeat, burying her head into his shoulder. "I just am."

"Okay." He spied the magazine as he rubbed her back comfortingly. "Was it the article? Did the article upset you?"

"No."She cried. "It was nice."

"So you're crying because you liked the article?" He questioned. "These are happy tears?"

"I think so." She choked. "I'm okay."

He smiled. "I love this."

"What?" She asked, attempting to dry her eyes. "You love me crying?"

"No." He was still grinning. " I love the hormones, the cravings, the mood swings, all the chaos that we're in for over the next year or so. I love the idea of seeing you with our baby in your arms again, the sleepless nights..."

"You may like the idea of the sleepless nights now." She sighed, managing to halt her tears. "But you're gonna hate it when this baby is here."

"I'm gonna love most stuff then though." He pointed out. "You have got to admit that I'm a pro at changing diapers."

She laughed, "I'll let you have that. You are kind of a pro at."

"So, want to talk names?" He suggested, grinning at her.

"Isn't it a little early for that?" She responded.

"It's never too early to throw a few names around." He concluded. "Although I do think that, seeing as we're very well known now, this baby has to have an extremely outrageous name, so I'm thinking, if it's a boy, we should go with something like Sailor Tailor Bolton..."

He cut off as she lightly slapped him. "We are not giving our child an outrageous name." She insisted. "This baby will have a normal name and the media are just going to have to deal with it."

"So i'm guessing Moonbeam and starlight are out too?"

"They were never in." She glared playfully at him. "I am not going to give our child an extreme, crazy and possibly cruel name. I don't want any of our kids to be bullied."

"Kirra isn't exactly run of the mill." He pointed out. "Not the way we spell it anyway."

"The other kids aren't going to know that she doesn't spell it K-E-I-R-A." She answered. "Not in elementary school anyway. After that they'll probably be too old to care."

"Speaking of schools..." Troy began. "You remember we have that meeting at the Forest Academy this afternoon?"

"Yeah." She sighed. "I'm still not convinced with this whole private school thing."

"If she goes to public school she'll get used because we have money, I just want her to know who her real friends are." He tried reasoning once again.

"They're four years old." Gabriella answered. "I highly doubt any of them will be using anyone."

"The parents will get them too." He continued. "Besides, how cute would Tammy look in a uniform?"

Gabriella ignored him. "We're not snobs, we're not going to fit in with the other parents, and how do you know that the parents of private school kids won't get to them, if you're that worried about it, maybe I should just home school her."

"You have a degree to get." He shot back. "You do not have time to home school her. I promised myself years ago that I would not let anything hold you back, you are going to law school, and you are eventually going to get your doctorate."

"I can get my doctorate later." Gabriella decided. "It can wait. Tamsin can't."

"No." He demanded. "You have put your life on hold for me and the kids for years already, you're not doing it any more. My parents are set on moving up here, mom told me last night, so six months after this baby is born, you're going back to college, internet courses if you want but you are getting your doctorate. Tamsin will be at school and my parents will be here to look after Kirra and the baby, so no excuses."

"I love it when you take control." She grinned slyly, quickly pressing her lips to his.

He pulled away. "Stop trying to distract me, angel. It won't work. We're going to take Tamsin to look around Forest Academy this afternoon like we planned, and if we decide that it isn't the school for her, we'll look at others, both public and private schools."

"How far is this school?" She queried, reaching over and taking the information booklet off of his bedside table.

"Close enough for you to walk her every morning." He informed her. "I know how important that is to you."

She smiled, settling herself in his arms as she opened the booklet and read it once again.

- - -

"Some people call it lack of discipline but we call it free expression." The woman, Mrs. Leyton, explain to them. "Here at Forest Academy we believe in giving the children the freedom to explore the world."

Gabriella glanced around at the various young children running riot around the room, free expression was one thing, this was just dangerous. Children were climbing up on tables, hitting windows with drumsticks, literally painting the walls.

"Should they be doing that?" She questioned, gesturing to two girls whom were drawing on each others faces in felt tip pen."

"Oh, it's perfectly fine." Mrs. Leyton insisted. "The pens are washable."

Gabriella glanced up at her husband, noticing that he had picked up their daughter and was clutching her to his side protectively.

"This is just the kindergarten class." Mrs. Leyton continued. "As they're so young we usually hold them back a little bit. When they get into first grade we kind of loosen the reigns a bit."

"How loose do they want it?" Gabriella heard Troy whisper in her ear. "It's chaos."

Gabriella jumped as she saw a child come hurtling towards her, felt her husband pull her out of the way just in time.

He placed Tamsin on the floor in order to wrap his arms around her, already concerned. "Are you okay? You're not hurt are you?"

"I'm fine."

"The baby. Is the baby okay?"

"The baby's good. The kid didn't hit me."

"Maybe we should get you checked out too today." He continued. "Just in case, you know."

"I'm fine." She assured him. "We're okay."

"Daddy, did that horrible boy hurt my brother?" They both smiled at Tamsin's question. She'd been referring to the baby as her brother ever since they'd told her, even though they had explained that it could be another girl.

"No, Tammy." Gabriella answered. "Baby's okay."

Tamsin nodded, allowing her father to lift her up into his arms again as he turned to the teacher. "We should probably go, we have a doctors appointment this afternoon. We have some other schools we're going to look at. We'll be in touch."

Quickly, still carrying his daughter. Troy led his wife through the chaos and back towards the front entrance of the school, not waiting for the teacher's response.

As they made it through the doors he sighed with relief. "Okay, apparently uniform can hide terror."

"I don't have to go there, do I daddy?" Tamsin asked curiously. "I don't like it there."

"No, princess." He answered. "There is absolutely no way you are going to that school."

"Tammy, you want to spend the rest of afternoon with Grandma while mommy and daddy take Kirra to the doctors?" Gabriella asked her eldest child, watching her nod.

"I don't need a shot." Tamsin pointed out, well aware of the reason that her sister was being taken to a doctor. "Shots are bad."

"Shots stop you from getting poorly, princess." Troy tried explaining, smiling at the sceptical look that graced her face in response. "Mommy and Daddy are going to stop Kirra getting poorly."

"But Kirra doesn't get poorly." Tamsin responded, confused. "Sophie got poorly."

"Mommy and Daddy would rather that it carried on like that." Gabriella smiled. "With Kirra not getting poorly. Like we like it better when you don't get poorly."

"But what if I go to school and get poorly?" Tamsin questioned, a look of fear in her eyes. They'd explained school to her the best they could. "I don't want to be poorly at school."

"You don't go to school if you're feeling poorly, princess." Troy told her. "If you're not feeling well mommy or daddy will stay home with you, and if you start feeling bad at school, one of us, or even grandma, will come and get you."

"So I won't be all sicky at school?"

"No, baby, you won't." Gabriella assured her.

- - -

"Kirra, please don't cry." Gabriella cooed over her daughter as she attempted to put the child's coat back on. "It's all over now sweetie, please don't cry, mommy doesn't like it when you cry." She jumped back as Kirra kicked out from the bed she was sitting on, instinctively wrapping her arms around her abdomen protectively. "Kirra, you don't kick mommy. You don't kick anyone."

She glanced around at her husband, whom had missed everything as he stood by the doorway having a hushed conversation with the doctor. Kirra's cries grew louder, her kicking became more furious, and she knew that she couldn't approach her while she was in this state.

"Troy." She called. "Your daughter is being impossible."

She watched her husband turn and sigh before making his way towards them.

"She didn't hit you, did she?" He questioned, looking over her body for any marks. He turned to their daughter. "Kirra, you didn't hurt mommy, did you?"

Kirra kicked out again, prompting him to approach her and finish putting her coat on through her tantrum.

"MOMMY." The two year old screamed, reaching for her mother while attempting to kick her father away.

"No, mommy is not going to cuddle you." Troy insisted, picking her up. "You're being a bad girl and while you're trying to kick people mommy's not going to come near you."

He glanced over at his wife, seeing the tears pricking in her eyes as she stayed back, chewing on her lip, her arms still crossed over her body. He knew she hated this, but he also knew that she wouldn't come near, she wouldn't risk the life of one of her children merely to soothe one of the others.

He smiled as their family doctor approached his wife, getting her to focus on him. "Gabriella, I have some time before my next patient, Troy told me about an incident this morning, would you mind if I checked the baby?"

"There wasn't an incident." She denied. "It was an almost incident, nothing happened. Me and the baby, we're good."

"I'd feel better if you checked." Troy spoke up, adjusting Kirra in his arms. "Just to be on the safe side."

Gabriella frowned at him. "But there's nothing wrong."

"Angel." He spoke softly. "Please. For me."

"But we have an appointment next week." She continued excusing. "And we told your mom we wouldn't be long."

"Gabriella." He used her full name to let her know he was serious. "Please."

She sighed. "Fine." She made sure he knew she wasn't happy about it before turning to the doctor. "If it makes Troy feel better, fine. We'll check on the baby."

- - -

"I told you he was fine." Gabriella responded triumphantly as her husband got in the car. "I told you."

"He?" Troy asked, raising an eyebrow. "Since when was this baby a boy."

"We can't keep calling it the baby." She reasoned. "It's so impersonal. This is our child. Not one of Tamsin's dolls."

"Although she will think it is." He joked, smiling as she giggled. "I think we have a little helper on our hands with her."

"She's excited." She smiled. "She was too young to understand when we had Kirra, now she knows."

"We're going to have to watch her." He pointed out. "Being outnumbered isn't going to be easy."

"It'll be tiring." She pointed out, even more tiring than the two we have now. "Babies are hard work."

"I remember." He smirked, hearing Kirra whine slightly as she slept in her car seat behind his wife. "the hardest part for me though, was when you were attempting to break my hand and swearing to me that you'd never let me touch you again. You're lucky I didn't hold you to that."

"You'd never have held me to that." She retorted. "You can't keep your hands off of me."

"True." He admitted. "But look at you, a guy can only resist so much. You're gorgeous, even though you are starting to show."

"You noticed?" She quizzed. "I thought I was just imagining it. You can see it?"

"It's not obvious." He smiled at her excitement. "But it's definitely there."

"I'm not sure how I feel about that." She admitted. "Please don't go off with Jen while i'm fat."

"Gabriella." He answered seriously. "There is nothing and no one that I would ever leave you for. And you're not going to get fat. You're having a baby, our baby, the most natural thing in the world. It doesn't get better than that for me."

"Flatterer." She accused, before nodding her head in the direction of the steering wheel, prompting him to start driving, amusing him with one last comment. "I'm going to need new clothes."

- - -

"Gabs, i'm just saying." Evan complained, following her around the kitchen. "You're home like, all day, you should at least call home and get mom and dad to stop bugging me about it."

"Evan, I have kids." Gabriella pointed out. "Even the one that hasn't been born yet is demanding. You expect me to cook, clean, raise kids, complete a degree and call home all at the same time?"

"Once a week?" Evan tried, sighing at his sister's reluctance. "Seriously Gabs, mom and dad have been giving me hell trying to get information on you. Do they even know you're pregnant?"

"Troy told them." She answered. "And even if he hadn't they'd know by now. The interview, remember?"

"Gabs." He exclaimed. "I have to study, how do you expect me to study with dad calling every half hour asking questions about you?"

"Did you come here to lecture me?" Gabriella quizzed. "Because I was pretty sure that Troy got you over here to babysit me because the girls wanted both him AND his mom to take them to that new inside play area."

"It's not babysitting."

"But you admit that he did call you."

"Yes, he called me, okay." Evan admitted. "But can you honestly say you blame him. Something always goes wrong when you're alone."

"What's going to happen then Ev?" She asked. "What's going to happen when i'm locked in my house because everyone's too worried to let me go out alone? What's going to happen considering my husband won't even let me come with him when he and his mother take my children to an indoor play area. There's more danger of me exploding than anything happening in this house."

Evan watched in confusion as she stormed out of the room, waiting before following her. After making it to the landing upstairs, he saw the bathroom door closed, but checked the other rooms before concluding that she had locked herself away. He knocked on the door, sighing when the only response he got was "Go away." and headed back downstairs, fishing his cell out of his pocket. He got the desired response after only speaking one sentence. "She's locked herself in the bathroom."

He heard the frustrated sigh of his brother-in-law at the other end of the line. "I'm on my way. You better not have upset her."

It took him a little longer than ten minutes to make it to the house, and Evan smiled as the older man ignored his presence, his attention solely on his wife.

"Baby?" Troy called through the bathroom door. "I'm home now, can you come out?"

"I'm not talking to you." Gabriella called in response. "The baby isn't talking to you either."

Troy chuckled at her behaviour, putting her childish behaviour down to mood swings. "Why aren't you talking to me, angel?"

"You made him come here!"

"Evan?"

"Yes, Evan."

"Did Evan upset you?" Troy turned to glare slightly at his brother-in-law. "cos I'll kick his ass if he did."

"He listened to you." Gabriella replied, before slowly opening the bathroom door, coming face to face with her husband. "You made him come a babysit me, and he was trying to bully me into calling my parents. I'm not a child, I don't need babysitting, and I don't need to constantly be on the phone to my parents."

Troy sighed, turning to Evan. "Go back to your dorm, study, make out with a random girl, whatever." He paused as his wife hit him on the chest, smiled at her then continued. "I promise I will get her to call your parents tonight."

Gabriella watched as Evan merely nodded and quickly ran downstairs, clearly worried that Troy was angry that she had locked herself in the bathroom. "Where are the kids?"

He placed a hand on her stomach. "One's here." He smirked. "And the other two are downstairs with my mom."

"You didn't have to come." Gabriella frowned, clearly feeling guilty. "You didn't have to bring them home early."

"They were tired anyway." He insisted. "And I was worried."

"You're always worried." She smirked. "Can't I even sit in the bathroom without being pestered by my husband?"

"Not when you're upset." He insisted. "I don't take the space route, remember, I take the fussing route."

"How could I forget?" She laughed, walking past him towards the stairs. "I'm going to go and pick Kirra up."

"No you're not." He refused, smiling as she sped up, going after her. "Don't you dare pick her up."

* * *

**Just wondering, I don't think I actually ever said it before, how many of you figured out that Kirra is pronounced the same is Keira?**

**Review!!**


	55. Panic

**I wasn't planning on putting this up now, but i finished it early, so now im going to move onto the next MIR, and the epilogue.**

* * *

_Flashback_

_Lucille stood up as her son exited the room in front of her, his excitement evident._

"_Mom!" He exclaimed, engulfing her in a hug, failing to keep in his tears of joy. "Mom, i'm a dad, a little girl mom, I got a daughter, she's.... she's perfect and tiny, and... she has my nose."_

"_A girl?" She smiled widely. "I have a granddaughter?"_

"_She's beautiful." He gushed, before letting his nerves show through. "What am I doing, mom? I don't know how to look after a baby."_

"_You'll do great." She assured him. "You look after Sophie all the time. You know what you're doing."_

"_I got to hand Sophie back at the end of the day." He argued, clearly worried. "I can't hand her back, mom, she's mine, I have to keep her. I don't know what to do."_

"_You'll be fine." She repeated. "Once you have that little girl, that tiny little baby, home, you'll know exactly what to do, because she's yours, and she needs you."_

"_You're sure?"_

"_Yes, i'm sure. Your dad and I felt the same way when we had you."_

_Troy smiled. "Do you want to see her?"_

_She nodded, allowing her son to lead her into the room, noticing the instant change in him as soon as he entered – his wife didn't know how scared he was, and he didn't intend for her to find out._

"_Gab." He whispered, smiling as she looked up at him with tired eyes. "How's our girl?"_

"_She's good." Gabriella replied, adjusting the infant in her arms, turning to her. "You want to go see grandma?"_

_Smiling, Lucille approached them, gently taking the infant out of it's mothers arms, settling the baby in her own arms and sitting down in the chair by the bed. "She's gorgeous. Have you decided on a name?"_

"_Tamsin." Troy responded. "Tamsin Sarah Bethany Bolton."_

"_Tamsin?" Lucille whispered. "After your cousin?"_

_Troy nodded, "And Bethany after your aunt Beth."_

"_It's perfect." She insisted, smiling adoringly at the infant. "And they both would have loved it, but, why Sarah?"_

"_To remind us of all the obstacles we overcame to get here." Gabriella spoke up, her eyes still on the baby. She yawned softly. "To get her."_

"_Gab." Troy whispered. "Baby, go to sleep."_

"_But Tamsin..."_

"_Will still be here when you wake up." He interrupted. "I'll get everyone else here by then too."_

"_Where are they?" She questioned, yawning again. _

"_They all went down to the canteen, thought it would be a while." Lucille smiled softly. "I didn't want to miss a thing."_

_End Flashback_

Lucille smiled at the memory as she watched Tamsin dart around the yard after a butterfly.

It wasn't long before the four year old faced her grandmother, pouting. "Grandma, it won't slow down so I can catch it."

"How about you try again tomorrow?" Lucille quizzed her. "It might be tired then."

Tamsin pondered this new idea before nodding, not yet able to think logically enough to know the butterfly would not be there tomorrow. "When will mommy and daddy be home?"

"I don't know, honey." Lucille answered, stepping back from the door so the four year old could enter. "Daddy's trying to make mommy cheer up."

"But mommy is cheered up." Tamsin insisted, walking straight through the dining room and to the entryway, knowing her grandmother was following her. "She said so."

"Sometimes mommy and daddy need some grown up time." Lucille tried explaining, only just managing to prevent herself from laughing at the disbelieving look on her grandchild's face. "Daddy and mommy have gone to make sure they aren't too tired to play tag with you tomorrow."

Tamsin shrugged, accepting the explanation. "I know a secret."

"Really?" Lucille questioned, kneeling down to the child's level. "And what might that be?"

"I'll tell you only if you promise not to tell." Tamsin stated seriously, nodding for emphasis.

"I promise not to tell." Lucille smiled. "Never ever."

Tamsin leaned forward, whispering in her grandmothers ear. "Sophie has a boyfriend."

Lucille grinned at the innocence in the child's words, remembering how Chad and Taylor had got Sophie into daycare almost as soon as they moved, whereas her son and daughter-in-law had decided against it. Their last experience with it wasn't pleasant, Gabriella wasn't going to be working for a while, and they didn't really need it while she was staying with them.

"Really." She answered Tamsin. "Your daddy says you're not allowed boyfriends."

"He said I never ever ever ever ever ever ever have a boyfriend." Tamsin giggled. "Boys are icky."

"But you want a brother?"

"My brother won't be icky." Tamsin responded. " Because he'll have to listen to me."

- - - -

Gabriella glanced over at the door to the mens toilets again, surprised that her husband had not yet emerged.

She turned back to the bar, sipping on the lemonade in front of her. "Strongest thing you're having." her husband had insisted when they arrived.

She looked down at herself, pleased that she had managed to find a shirt that covered up the slight bump.

"Well, hello." She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, and turned to see the blonde that had sat himself on the other side of her, slightly alarmed at how close he was. "What's a pretty girl like you doing here all alone?"

Gabriella suppressed her giggles long enough to speak, deciding, instead of yelling at him, she would have some fun. "I guess if you're gonna get this close to me I should find out a few things. Tell me...um.."

"Kyle." The guy replied, and her jaw almost dropped at the name, another K, definitely bad news.

"Um Kyle." She continued. "Do you like the Lakers?"

"Nah." He answered. "More of a football guy."

"Ok. What about children? Do you like children?"

"Erm, they're okay, I guess." He responded, confused by her questioning. "Why?"

"I have two." She informed him, before thinking again. "Wait, three." She placed her hand on her stomach. "If you include this one." She paused at the look of shock on his face.

"Kids are cool, I guess."

She could tell he didn't believe she was pregnant, that top must have covered it up better than she thought. "What about other guys?" She paused. "Are you into guys too? Because my husband doesn't really like it when I go off with strangers, he likes to come with me."

"Husband?" Kyle choked, before another voice answered.

"Yes, husband." Troy confirmed, having been watching the pair at a distance. "As brave as you are for approaching someone who's way out of your league, I don't appreciate you hitting on my wife."

"Erm, sorry." Kyle stuttered, eyeing him warily. "She doesn't look married."

Gabriella laughed slightly before holding up her left hand, displaying both her engagement and wedding bands as Troy wrapped his arms around her shoulders from behind. "Five years."

"Why would you leave her alone like that, dude?" Kyle quizzed, clearly looking for any sign that she was being neglected by her husband.

"I didn't." Troy's answer was quick. "That guy over there by the window, and that one at the other end of the bar, security, I pay them to watch her, if you'd of actually tried touching her, your face wouldn't look like that right now."

Kyle glanced around, frowning warily as he noticed both men, people that Gabriella had noticed following them pretty much as soon as they left the house.

"I'll um," Kyle paused. "Leave you to it then."

"That sounds like a great idea Kyle." She responded, leaning back into her husband's chest. She watched as he walked away before questioning her husband. "Is it really necessary for them to be here? You're here."

"I'm not when i'm in the bathroom." He pointed out. "Unless you know of a way I could avoid needing to go."

"I'm sure I'd be fine for five minutes." She reasoned. "I'm in a public place, what could happen?"

He smiled, deciding to take a chance with his comment. "You're you, something always happens."

She pulled away from him, sitting up straight in protest, refusing to look at him as she pouted. "You're mean. I'm telling your mom you were being mean."

He chuckled before playing along. "Please don't tell her angel. I'd get told off. I'm sorry. Please don't tell my mom. I love you."

"I think I prefer Kyle to you right now." She smirked, glancing around. "Look he's still here."

She stood up, smiling as he reacted exactly how she expected, an arm snaking around her waist and pulling her back, his lips automatically by her ear. "Now who's being mean?"

- - - -

Tamsin whimpered as she woke, taking in the sight of her room, the monster was nowhere to be seen. Slowly she climbed out of bed, padding softly towards her ajar bedroom door. Pulling it open softly, she tiptoed out and past her grandmothers room. She pushed open the door to her parents room slowly, alarmed to see one of the bedside lamps on and her mother sitting up reading.

"Hey baby." Gabriella smiled when she saw her, although a hint of concern glistened in her eyes. "You okay?"

"I can't find the monster." Tamsin told her, biting her lip in fear. "It was there and then it wasn't."

Gabriella sighed, putting down the book and opening her arms. "Come here." Tamsin obeyed, hurrying to the bed and climbing into her mothers arms. "There aren't any monsters in the house, okay? Daddy chased them all away."

"But it was there." Tamsin protested, stray tears falling down her cheeks. "It was big and green and slimy and it was gonna get me."

"Tammy, baby." Gabriella spoke, her tone reassuring. "I promise you, I will never ever let the monsters get you, okay?"

"Okay." Tamsin agreed, allowing her mother to shift her to the middle of the bed. "Mommy, why weren't you sleeping?"

"Baby's hungry." Gabriella answered truthfully. "I didn't want to wake daddy up."

Tamsin frowned, recalling her father saying on numerous occasions that her mother had to wake him up if she needed him.

She turned away from her mother and poked her father in the side, giggling as he grunted and swatted at her hand. She repeated the gesture, eventually causing him to wake up.

What is it Ga...?" He paused as he saw his daughter. "Princess, what are you doing in here?"

"The baby's hungry and mommy didn't want to wake you up." She informed him, nodding to emphasise her words. "But you said she had to."

He glanced up at his wife to see her fully awake, and sat up, wrapping an arm around Tamsin. "What's on the menu?"

"I don't really know." She admitted. "Nothing sweet or spicy. Maybe something cheesy."

She smiled as he climbed out of bed. "Cheesy, got it." He walked around the bed, pecking her on the lips. "I love you more than the world."

"Not that kind of cheesy." She giggled as he turned to their daughter. "You want anything princess?"

"Find the monster." Tamsin demanded. "I can't sleep if the monster's there."

"I can't go monster hunting in the dark." He assumed she had had a bad dream and frowned to make her believe his statement. "It'll have to wait till morning."

Ten minutes later, he made his way back into his bedroom, a cheese roll and glass of water in his hands, and smiled at the sight of the four year old fast asleep on the bed.

"How long's she been out?" He asked his wife, placing the plate on her lap and the glass on the bedside table.

"A few minutes." Gabriella answered. "I was going to take her back to her room, but I figured you'd yell at me and wake everyone up."

"I wouldn't have yelled." He argued, tucking a stray piece of her hair behind her ear. "I just wouldn't have been very happy about it. Want me to take her back?"

"No, leave her." Gabriella decided. "It's okay for just one night, and you're tired, you could drop her and then she'd get hurt."

"I wouldn't drop her." He answered. "I never have before."

"You've never been this tired before." She pointed out. "Do you really want to take the risk?"

He frowned, seeing her point as he shook his head before climbing into the other side of the bed, waiting until his wife had finished eating and had settled herself before shifting his arm so it lay protectively over both his wife and eldest child.

- - - -

Lucille frowned at the sound of crying, surprised that her son or daughter-in-law had not yet responded to it. She made her way up the steps, unable to leave the child crying any longer.

Opening the door to Kirra's room she looked in to see the two year old standing up in her crib, hysterical tears in her eyes, one glance at the clock told her why she was crying, they were late getting her up, she thought they'd forgotten her.

"Hey cutie." She greeted, lifting the child out of the crib, noting that the toddler was getting too big for it, something she'd have to mention to her son. "Are mommy and daddy still asleep? Shall we go get your sister and have breakfast?"

Kirra laid her head on her grandmother's shoulder, clinging on tightly as they left the room, heading into Tamsin's.

She automatically panicked when she saw Tamsin's bed empty, she knew her eldest granddaughter wasn't downstairs, Tamsin had perfected making herself known when she was Kirra's age.

"Tamsin!" She called throughout the empty room, carefully holding onto Kirra as she swung open the wardrobe, standing back so she could look under the bed. "This isn't funny, Tammy."

She hurried out of the room and down the hall, bursting into her son's room without knocking. "I can't find..." She paused, taking in the sight of the child staring back at her between her sleeping parents. "Tammy, what are you doing in here?"

"There's a monster." Tamsin elaborated. "I stay here till daddy make it go."

She smiled, that explained why the other adults in the house were still asleep, their daughter had woken them up in the middle of the night.

"How about we go get some breakfast?" Lucille suggested. "Let mommy and daddy sleep, and then as soon as daddy gets up, we'll ask him to get rid of the monster."

"Mommy and daddy want to get up now." Tamsin decided. "I want to go see the tigers"

"Aren't you hungry?"

"Yes." Tamsin responded quickly. "But I can eat what the tigers eat."

"No, honey." Lucille frowned convincingly. "I'm afraid the Tigers won't want to share, how about we go have breakfast, and we talk to mommy and daddy about going to see the tigers too?"

Tamsin nodded, crawling to the bottom of the bed and climbing off at the end so as not to disrupt her sleeping parents. "What couldn't you find?"

Lucille smiled. "It doesn't matter, I found it."

Gabriella smiled as they left the room, having been woken up near the beginning of the conversation, she turned over to cuddle further into her husband, not surprised when his arms wrapped around her.

"Baby." She whispered into his ear, smiling as he tightened his grip slightly in response. "Baby, we have to get up. You have monster hunting to do, and Tammy wants to go to the zoo."

"I love you too." He responded groggily, his eyes still closed. "Go back to sleep, it's early."

"Babe, it's ten." She answered, giggling as his grip loosened and his eyes snapped open.

"Kirra?" He questioned. "Who got her up? You remember what happened last time we got her up this late? She was resistant for three days!"

"Your mom got her." Gabriella answered. "She came in here to get Tamsin, and Kirra was gurgling away, plus, I could feel her wrath, she's going to make our lives hell for a few days."

"Not funny."

"It was pretty funny." She smiled. "I love that you're scared of our two year old."

"One thing that scares me more than two year old Kirra?" He queried, before answering himself. "Fourteen year old Tamsin, how the hell did you talk me into this dating at fourteen thing?"

"By telling you I wouldn't kiss you for a month if you didn't agree." She reminded him. "And by saying I wouldn't let you so much as touch me."

"But fourteen!" He exclaimed. "That's too young, how about sixteen? Seventeen? Forty?"

"Your mom told me that you started dating when you were twelve." She made him acknowledge.

"That's different!" He insisted, before responding to her eye roll. "It is, i'm not my daughter!"

"The girls you were dating were all someone's daughter." She smiled. "So am I, for that matter. So going by your logic, we shouldn't actually be together right now, because I shouldn't be dating at all for another thirteen years at least."

He frowned, knowing her had been defeated. "How's baby this morning?"

"Very happy now that daddy has just lost a debate."

"I said baby, not mommy." He chuckled.

"Baby and mommy are very in tune with eachother." She responded. "Right now, baby wants daddy to get mommy some coffee."

"Baby can want on." Troy grinned at her subtle attempt. "Mommy's not allowed coffee for quite a few months yet."

"Just for that, i'm going to make you clear out the spare room." She pouted. "Someone has to get started on this nursery."

"Do you want to find out the sex of the baby before we do that?"

"We never have before." she answered. "Why be different this time? I want it to be a surprise."

He sighed in relief, happy with her response, if she had wanted to know, he wouldn't have denied her the right, but he was glad she didn't, he didn't want to see her reaction to hearing the baby was a girl, and the chance of her getting that answer was 50/50, when the baby is finally there, she'd be too overwhelmed to even think about what she had wanted at this point.

"So..." He broke the silence that had fallen. "We should shower, get dressed, and then I've got a little spot of monster hunting to do."

"Do you have practice today?" She queried. "I didn't check."

"This afternoon." He frowned as he climbed out of bed, turning back to her. "You, mom and the girls are gonna have to hit the zoo without me."

"Okay." She answered. "When will you be back?"

"Around six." He smiled, moving round the bed and sitting by her. "You don't want me to go."

She shook her head. "I miss you when you're gone."

"I miss you too." He chuckled. "But it's only a few hours. I'll be back before you know it."

"I thought I might bring the girls to the game on Wednesday?" She informed him. "Is that okay?"

"Baby, that's more than okay." He responded. "Just you and the girls?"

"I figured we should let her have some time to herself while she's here, she hasn't called your dad once yet." She frowned, but rolled her eyes at the look that took over his features. "Don't worry, I asked Evan to come, I won't be carrying anyone." She shook her head as he sighed in obvious relief. "Go shower before you dig yourself into a hole."

- - - -

"Tamsin." Gabriella yawned, gaining the attention of her eldest child. "You really shouldn't tire mommy out before dinner."

"Unless grandma's making dinner." Lucille interrupted, smiling. "Then all mommy has to do is eat."

"I said I was making it tonight." Gabriella frowned, turning to her mother-in-law.

"That was before you were tired out by my grandchildren." Lucille responded, before eyeing her with a stern look. "You go and sit down, put your feet up, look after my other grandchild. Tamsin can help me with dinner, can't you honey." Tamsin nodded. "And Kirra should nap."

"I love you." Gabriella smiled, hugging her mother in law. "I'll probably go and take a nap with Kirry."

Lucille smiled. "Okay, I'll get Troy to wake you when dinner's ready, okay?"

Gabriella nodded, heading upstairs as she watched Lucille pick up an already half asleep Kirra and lay her down on the couch, caringly placing her blankie over her and muttering. "Won't you nap in your crib any more sweetie? Is it getting too small? Daddy will have to buy you a big bed like Tamsin has won't he?"

She continued watching as Tamsin walked over, placing her new stuffed Tiger by Kirra's feet and moving her sister's new toy elephant next to it. Smiling as the four year old looked up at her grandmother. "Tiggy Tiger will look after eleant and Kirra."

She turned and continued up the stairs as Lucille took Tamsin's hand and led her to the kitchen."

- - - -

"Hello?" Troy called as he closed the front door of the house. "I could of sworn I saw a princess looking out the window."

"Shhhh." His mother scolded him. "Gabriella and Kirra are asleep."

"That's odd." He evaluated. "Mom, what time did you put Kirra down?"

"About ninety minutes ago, why?" She queried, frowning as he headed towards his younger daughter.

"She never sleeps for more than forty five during the day." He crouched down by the couch, shaking the two year old gently.

She whimpered and rolled over, he could tell she'd been awake for a while.

"Sweetie." he coaxed. "What's wrong?"

He sat by her, pulling her onto his lap, noticing the tears streaming down her face.

"Sweetie?" He questioned, pressing his hand to her forehead. He jumped up, holding her tightly in his arms. "Mom, she's burning up."

* * *

**Review!!!**


	56. Reunion

**Sorry it took so long, i've been lazy since the last MIR update (even though i started this first). It's not a good excuse but it's all I got.**

* * *

Troy kept the fake smile plastered on his face as he watched his daughter laying in the hospital bed, her gaze remaining on him. The last few hours had been agonizing for him, and he knew that when he got home he'd be in even more trouble: he instructed his mother not to tell his wife he'd taken their younger child to hospital unless it was absolutely necessary and had since been left many strongly worded voicemails and texts from said wife about that decision.

He stood when the doctor re-entered the room, staying by his daughter, allowing her to approach them.

"Has your daughter been in contact with any animals recently?" She questioned, a bright smile on her face. "Animals she wouldn't normally come into contact with."

"She went to the zoo earlier." He answered honestly. "My girls like petting the animals in the petting zoo, their mom can't but they love it, why?"

He saw the interest in her eyes as he mentioned that Gabriella couldn't go to petting zoo's.

"Mr. Bolton." She smiled. "Your daughter suffered an allergic reaction to a rabbit, an animal common to petting zoos. She should be fine. If any problems arise feel free to come back or consult your family doctor."

"That's it?" He sighed, relieved. "You will not believe the things that went through my head. I was thinking meningitis, cholera, pneumonia, everything serious."

"It's natural to worry." The doctor smiled. "But your daughter is fine. Just allergic to rabbits."

"Another way you're like mommy, right sweetie?" He grinned at his daughter, chuckling as she narrowed her eyes in confusion. "Is there anything I should give her? Medicine?"

"We've given her all she should need. She'll be fine, Mr. Bolton, she may seem tired for a few days or a little off, but she'll be okay, I just need you to sign the discharge papers."

* GABRIELLA ran to the door as soon as her husband's car pulled on the drive, immediately storming over to the vehicle. "What then hell were you thinking? Were you thinking? She's my baby, Troy, she's my baby. Why didn't you wake me up? What made you think it was okay to not tell me about this?"

"I was thinking..." He responded, trying to remain calm. "That we didn't know that anything was seriously wrong, and that the unnecessary stress isn't good for the baby."

"SHE IS MY BABY." Gabriella repeated, letting anger take over. "I HAVE TO LOOK AFTER HER TOO, I HAD A RIGHT TO KNOW."

She pulled open the door to the back of the car, unstrapping the toddler and lifting her out, challenging her husband to even try and stop her with her eyes. She glanced down at Kirra, settled in her arms, when he didn't respond, frowning as the girl's gaze remained on her father.

"Kirra, baby." She sighed. "Mommy's sorry she wasn't there. Mommy's sorry."

"No more petting zoos."

"What?" She snapped the question. "My baby was just in hospital and all you can say is no more petting zoos. Are you serious? Do you really think I care about those right now?"

"Gab." His voice was still soft. "She's allergic to rabbits. It was an allergic reaction."

He noticed the shock and hurt in her eyes before she muttered. "This is my fault."

"Gab..."

"No." She interrupted. "This is my fault, it's genetic. My weak pathetic genes made my baby sick. I should have queried it. I should have spotted that she was sick. I'm a terrible mother. What kind of a mother doesn't even realise her child is having an allergic reaction? What kind of mother doesn't notice when her child has the same allergic reaction that she's had herself?"

"Gab..."

She wouldn't let him get a word in. "You need to take them. You need to get them far away from me before I do something worse. YOU spotted she was sick. YOU took her to the hospital. YOU know what you're doing. I don't."

He approached her, embracing both her and Kirra. "I only checked because my mom told me how long she'd been asleep and I thought it was weird. I took her to the hospital because I panicked. Genetics are not your fault, and yours are perfect anyway, no one would have queried it. You are an amazing mother, I wish you could see that."

He sighed as she buried her head in the crook of his neck, knowing that most of her doubt, most of her anger, was down to hormones. He had to be more careful, or risk upsetting her.

Slowly, he closed the car door, locking it with his free hand before leading his wife inside, their daughter still cradled in her arms.

"Is she okay?" He heard his mother's voice in the hall and glanced over at her to see Tamsin standing by her side, chocolate around her mouth.

"It was an allergic reaction." He answered. "She'll be fine." He released his wife, frowning when her only response was to try and move closer to him. Less than five minutes ago she'd been mad, and now she was clinging. "It's okay, angel, it's not your fault, I love you."

She held on tighter, and he watched, surprised as his mother managed to take Kirra from her, allowing him to comfort her properly.

He moved over to the couch, watching his mother take his daughters upstairs, taking up juice and a sandwich, obviously for Kirra, only then acknowledging that it was past their bedtime.

He sat down, pulling his wife onto his lap, allowing her to press her body as close to his as she could.

"Baby?" He whispered questioningly. "What's wrong? I didn't mean to upset you, or scare you, I just had to make a decision. I know it was wrong. I should have told you."

"Why didn't I notice?" She cried, clinging to him. "My mom noticed straight away when it was me. You noticed pretty much straight away. Why didn't I? What if it happens again and I don't notice. What if she dies next time?"

"Hey, hey." He soothed. "No talking like that, we know now, we know not to let her near rabbits. You've been so tired recently angel, you can't blame yourself for missing one thing."

"What do I say to Tamsin?" She sobbed, not looking at him as she asked. "When she was holding that rabbit earlier, she asked if we could get one, I told her we'd have to talk about it, she was so excited."

"Tell her daddy said no." He frowned at the mere suggestion of owning a rabbit. "Tell her, daddy said no because he doesn't want mommy or Kirra to be poorly. Gabs, you know I'd have said no anyway, right? Even if Kirra wasn't allergic, you still are, I'd never have said yes to it."

"I thought that.." She paused, looking up at him. "You'd help her look after it, and I wouldn't go near it, but now with Kirra..."

"I'd have said no." He repeated firmly. "Your health is a big priority of mine, Kirra being allergic too just reinforces that decision."

He smiled as Ozzy entered the room, approaching them warily, it was obvious that the dog was sensing his wife's distress.

"She's okay, boy." Troy spoke directly to the animal as it lay it's head as close to Gabriella as it could. "She's okay."

The dog refused to budge, eyeing them both warily.

"You eaten?" He questioned her, leaning down and kissing her forehead.

"No."She admitted. "I couldn't. I was worried about Kirra, it made me feel sick."

"Ok." He answered, standing up with her in his arms. "But you have to eat." He carried her to the kitchen, setting her on a stool before heading over to the fridge. "What do the two of you want?"

"We want chocolate milkshake and salad, and maybe some yoghurt." She informed him. "I'm sorry I didn't eat."

"It's not your fault." He sighed, pulling food out of the fridge. "I should have called. Although you do have to remember that there are two of you now."

"It's kinda hard to forget when i'm vomiting every morning." She shot back. "Not that that should last much longer. One thing i'm not gonna miss."

"Has it been that long already?" He asked, turning back to look at her. "We only found out like, yesterday."

"It's been almost a month since we found out." She corrected him. "A month of long nights of you talking to my stomach, which suddenly seems to be your new favourite part of my body."

"Right now, there is nothing I love more than the thought of that baby." He told her. "Your legs will still be there next year." He turned around, passing her placing the food in front of her.

She glanced down at it then back up at him, pouting. "You were meant to mix it together."

He grimaced before pulling the plate away from her and dutifully pouring the milkshake and some of the yoghurt onto the salad, listening to her laugh as he commented, "Gross."

* "YOUR child is attacking me." Gabriella announced to her husband weeks later.

"Which one?" He questioned, calling from the kitchen.

"Your youngest." She responded. "Very bad child."

She couldn't help but smile as he walked into the room, grinning as he walked over and knelt at her feet, placing a hand on her expanding stomach as he leaned towards it. "You behave, or you'll be grounded for the first year of your life." He looked up at his wife. "I thought the kicking wasn't meant to start for another few weeks."

"It's not." She answered. "Your child is attacking my bladder, and my mind, I just thought you should know."

He chuckled before leaning up to kiss her. "I already knew that, but thanks for the update." He glanced around the room before turning back to his wife. "We seem to have lost two children."

"At least we know where the third is." She joked, sticking her tongue out at him before answering properly. "Your mom put Kirra down for her nap. Tamsin's in the dining room deciding what shade of green we're painting her brother's room."

"She's really set on it being a boy, isn't she?" He mentioned, frowning slightly as she nodded. "How about you? You're not set on anything, are you?"

"I'll be happy either way." She assured him, biting her lip. "Honest."

"What is it?" He automatically asked. "You're nervous."

"I think I want to find out." She confessed. "The sex of the baby, I mean."

"Okay." He paused for thought before speaking. "Has this just came on or have you felt this way for a while?"

"I've been thinking about it for a while." She admitted. "I only decided that I wanted to know this morning. It will just make things so much easier to plan and I really hate not knowing what colour to paint the nursery."

"If you want to know, then we'll ask." He smiled, brushing some stray hair behind her ear. "But you're not painting the nursery. I am."

"No fair." She complained, narrowing her eyes. "You never let me."

"Because I want you healthy. No paint fumes for you." He replied, before adapting a serious look. "Think about it some more, okay. If you still want to know by the next scan, then i'm right behind you."

"Thank you." She whispered, leaning forward to kiss him. "Are you happy?"

"I'm ecstatic." he grinned. "Why?"

"It's just." She began, pausing to look down. "You could have played for the Knicks first, but you didn't, because you said you wouldn't go without me, and I didn't want to move. Then you could have gone to the Lakers earlier, but I was pregnant, I always get in the way of your dreams, you should..."

"Hey." He stopped her, knowing where she was going with this, she'd given him the same speech during her last pregnancy. "I've told you this before. You are my dream. This family is my dream. Basketball is not my dream. So unless you've figured out how to get in the way of yourself, I don't understand how you can get in the way of my dreams. I wouldn't change anything, even if I could go back." She opened her mouth to speak, but her interrupted before she could. "No buts, you. I love you."

She smiled. "I love you too."

* "WE encourage the children in the pre kindergarten and kindergarten classes to express themselves." The man informed them. "We aim to expand on their reading and writing skills to prepare them for future study. As students move up through the school they usually develop specific interests, which they are both helped and encouraged to pursue in every way possible. We like to ensure that all children in all grades know and understand that there are rules, and that those rules are there with good reason."

Tamsin was glancing around warily, clutching Lucille's hand as they walked through the school's auditorium, listening to the choir singing up on the stage.

"So, what do you do if the kids break the rules?" Troy quizzed, curious as to the school's policy. "Shout at them? Make them stand in a corner."

"No." The man had obviously been expecting the question. "For the younger children, we tell them that what they did was bad, explain to them why it was bad and ask them to apologise. The older children are given detention. At Briarwood, we don't believe that children learn through the humiliation that standing in a corner would bring, and we believe we should lead by example, if the children are not to shout, then neither are the staff."

"What sort of things would she be doing in class?" Gabriella piped up. "I still want her to be a kid, you know, not one of those mini adults."

"We agree, children should be allowed to act their age." He responded. "My staff and myself agree that the children can be adults when they are adults. In kindergarten, the children paint, play little shopping games, create their own stories, things that will teach them to be creative individuals. The aim in the first year is to teach them through play, including things such as the value of money. We introduce classes gradually from Christmas so they know what to expect in first grade." He led them out of the auditorium and into a corridor. "Our credits include top lawyer Megan Benson, renowned surgeon Caleb Turner and Author Kelly Bates, just to name a few."

"Is there a kitchen?"

They all turned to look at Tamsin as she spoke, but she was focused on the principal of the school, watching him with curious eyes.

He smiled, kneeling down to her level. "Yes, there four kitchens used for food classes, would you like to see one?" She nodded, watching as he stood up and turned to her parents, grandmother and younger sister. "This way then."

He stopped outside a door a few corridors later and knocked, entering without waiting for a reply and gesturing for them to follow.

"Mrs Hollinson." He smiled at the woman standing at the front of the class, surveying the group of children whom were in small groups around the surfaces. He waited until she turned before making an introduction. "This is Tamsin. She may be joining us in September."

"Hi." The teacher kept it casual. "Do you want to come and see what everyone is doing?"

Tamsin nodded, running towards the woman, pulling Lucille with her. "My Uncle Zeke cooks and he said he teach me and I help him."

Mrs Hollinson smiled. "That's wonderful. These children are currently making fruit salads in groups."

Tamsin looked over at the nearest group before turning back to the teacher. "Uncle Zeke says I can't touch the knives."

"These children are twelve." She answered. "That's a little bit bigger than you, don't worry though, time will fly."

"I four." Tamsin announced, holding up four fingers. "I be five later." She paused. "My Uncle Evan said cooking for girls. But Uncle Zeke say that he not a girl."

"Cooking is for everybody that wants to try." The teacher smiled, noticing she was gaining Lucille's approval.

"Not daddy." Tamsin warned. "Daddy burn everything, and mommy said he burn house down if not careful."

"Hey." Lucille turned round to find her son had appeared behind them. "I'm not that bad, princess."

"Mommy said daddy could burn water." Tamsin continued.

"What am I gonna do with mommy?" He questioned, picking up his daughter. Lucille glanced over to see Gabriella standing in the doorway, clearly asking more questions and oblivious to the conversation, rocking Kirra in the stroller by her side.

"When you say you tell mommy off." Tamsin announced. "You kiss her, and she laughs."

The teacher laughed. "Aren't you just a sweetie."

"Noooo." Tamsin responded. "I princess, Kirra sweetie." She turned to her father. "If I here, will they let me dance?"

"There are many extra curricular dance activities." The teacher spoke up. "All the students are welcome, the older ones, particularly the 11th graders, who usually take charge, love having the younger kids around."

"That worries me a little." Troy admitted, smiling slightly as Tamsin laid her head on his shoulder. "The school goes from Kindergarten right through to Senior Year. Is that a good idea? Don't the little kids get scared by the older ones?"

"They only mix for extra curriculars." The teacher explained. "They have separate lunchtimes, separate outside areas, and from Kindergarten to fifth grade, the children have all their classes in one base, so they're not walking around with the others between classes, a safety precaution more than anything. The high school grade students are also on a separate campus at the other side of the site."

"We'd best move on." The principal called from the door, clearly finished answering Gabriella's questions. "Music next, I think."

They followed him into the next corridor and entered yet another room.

"Miss Nielson?" He called, not seeing both Troy and Gabriella's heads snap up at the name.

She turned around quickly, seemingly alarmed at the intrusion as the class continued to play the instruments in their hands, the uniforms clearly not stifling their talent.

She gasped before heading straight for them. "You guys, it's been forever."

Gabriella automatically pulled the slightly smaller woman in for a hug. "and a day." She pulled back. "What are you doing here? I thought you were in New York with Jason."

"I was offered this job." Kelsi elaborated. " Soon after the party actually, I just couldn't turn it down, and Jason, he wasn't very supportive about it, so I decided to call it a day." She paused for breath before surveying her friend. "Look at you, supermom."

Troy smiled, unwilling to interrupt the exchange, he turned to the confused principal, Mr Baylis. "We went to high school with her."

* * *

**Ok, there you have it, it would be longer, but it's like, 3am, I just figured I'd left this wayyy to long.**

**Two more chapters plus the two parter epilogue to go. I'm really gonna miss these OC's.**

**REVIEW!**


	57. Hope

**Okay, this is bad, I know, but my laptop died, and I only just got a new one, and I became obsessed with Grey's Anatomy again. Then I checked the story stats and realised people have been checking this story, and then I feel all guilty because I really am terrible. I figured I'd just go straight through and finish IP before going back to MIR and Risk , 1 more chapter and the epilogue after this.**

**This is like, a month after the last chapter.**

**

* * *

**

Troy watched as Tamsin ran into the store, turning to him from inside the door. "Hurry up, daddy."

He adjusted Kirra on his hip and followed his older child in. She was already browsing possibilities.

"Which one do you want?" He knelt down to her level, Kirra still in his arms. "No pink."

"But it HAS to be pink, daddy." Tamsin insisted. She turned back to the items on the shelves, smiling and pointing to one just out of her reach. "That one, daddy, it's pink AND shiny."

He chuckled but reached up to pick one up. "What about you, sweetie?"

He watched as Kirra screwed up her nose before pointing to one of the items. He picked one up before surveying the shelf himself, picking up another two.

"You're too big, daddy." Tamsin giggled. "You can't make a bear."

"It's a present for mommy." He told her. "And the baby."

"My brother." Tamsin corrected him. "Not baby, brother."

"Okay." He relented, carrying the items to the next station. "Brother." He paused. "You want to record something for mommy?"

Tamsin nodded, and giggled as they recorded the words before picking out another two sounds, one for herself and one for her sister. The fourth bear would not have a sound.

He smiled faintly at the woman that greeted them as they moved on. She automatically focused on Tamsin. "Wow, are these all for you?"

Tamsin shook her head. "Mommy says daddy's not allowed to spoil us."

The woman held her hand out. "Can I see it?"

The child nodded and handed the woman the pink, sparkly bear. "Soft or Cuddly?"

Tamsin glanced up at her father in confusion.

"All soft." He decided himself.

Some half an hour later they left the shop, 4 boxes carrying 4 custom bears. Tamsin had insisted that they needed their own box each.

"Your mommy." He informed them. "Is going to tell me off."

"Noooo." Tamsin refused. "Give her bear."

"Gama." Kirra squealed. He looked up to see his mother walking towards them.

"I leave you alone for an hour." She sighed when she reached them. "And come back to find you've brought a collection of teddy bears."

He silently thanked her as she took two of the boxes and Tamsin's hand.

"Grandma?" Tamsin decided to question. "Is mommy mad at daddy?"

"Why would mommy be mad at daddy?" Lucille answered, looking down at the child.

"She said he ibiating because he won't let her go anywhere on her own." Tamsin nodded for emphasis.

"Irritating?" Lucille asked, smiling. "Mommy just thinks daddy worries too much."

"Which I don't." Troy informed his daughter, who glanced up at him disbelievingly. "I worry just enough." He turned to his mother. "Gab doesn't know that I asked Kelsi to stay with her today, right?"

Lucille laughed. "Of course she knows. Just like she knows these two are being spoilt today." She paused. "Things are good between you two?"

"Great." He responded. "I know I'm annoying her. I just don't see how I can leave her alone after everything. She almost broke down on the stand, mom."

Lucille nodded. "It was the first time she'd faced him since he took her. She was nervous. She panicked."

"Did you see his face when he saw her?" Troy smiled slightly, despite how serious it was. "It was like he was annoyed as well as jealous."

"He gets jail, you get a baby." Lucille pointed out. She smiled. "Fourteen years."

"Fourteen years." He responded, he too, smiling.

* * *

"Feel this." Gabriella grinned, grabbing her friend's hand and placing it on her stomach. "He's kicking."

"He?" Kelsi asked, smiling as she felt what her friend had been referring to. "It's a boy?"

"I don't know." Gabriella admitted. "But I think so. I can feel it, you know?"

"No." Kelsi reminded her friend. "No kids, remember?"

"Just babysitting for you?" Gabriella laughed. "Or is that Gabriella sitting. I swear he's obsessed."

"Was he like this with Tamsin and Kirra?"

"Worse." Gabriella elaborated. "With Tamsin he didn't know what he was doing, so even though I wasn't on bed rest, he refused to let me move. If he had enough cotton wool, he would have wrapped me in it. He laid off a little with Kirra, because he was more used to it I guess. I can't compare that to now though, because this time I actually was on bed rest."

"I can't believe you're a mom." Kelsi moved back, leaning against the back of the sofa. "You were always career first, family later in high school."

"We didn't plan it." She laughed. "We got married and got more than a little carried away." She looked over at one of the many pictures of her two daughters. "I wouldn't change it though."

"They're great kids." Kelsi commented. "Tamsin's definitely got Troy's personality."

"You noticed!" Gabriella continued laughing. "She's exactly like him. She even sits with her elbows up on the table like him."

"That's so cute." Kelsi cooed. "What do you think they're doing today?"

"Knowing Troy." Gabriella sighed. "They're being spoiled rotten. They'll be coming back with candy, toys, jewellery they're too young to wear, and, because Lucy's with them, new clothes." She looked properly at her friend. "Do you miss Jason?"

"No." Kelsi admitted. "I thought I would, but, I don't. We wanted different things, and I bent as far as I could go, he didn't even try. We were never like you and Troy. We've never been that in tune with each other."

"I miss Troy like, all the time when he's not here." She picked up a cracker, taking a bite and swallowing before continuing. "Even more now."

Kelsi nodded. "It's like you two know what the other is thinking."

"We were fighting a lot." Gabriella admitted. "Before we moved. We weren't communicating properly. He was working, I was working on and off, and then there was the kids. We weren't making time for each other."

"You sorted it out though." Kelsi pointed out, sensing the shift in her friend's emotions. "Everything's good now."

"I think..." Gabriella started. "It's part of the reason he's so protective now. I know he says it's because of everything that's happened, but, he just seems to get more protective every time he upsets me, like he's trying to protect me from himself or something."

"He never did like seeing you cry." Kelsi reminded her. "Even back in high school. He used to threaten to beat up anyone that upset you, remember?"

Gabriella nodded, standing as she heard a knock on the door. "He must have forgot his keys."

She left her friend sitting on the couch and headed towards the door, swinging it open, her eyes widening at the sight on the other side of it.

"Um... Troy's out." She got out, watching the man shift from foot to foot. "He and Lucy took the kids out." She paused. "They should be back soon."

"Gabriella." The man stated. "you're rambling."

"Gabs?" She stepped back as Kelsi appeared and smiled at the figure in the door. "Hi, Jack."

Jack nodded to her. "Gabriella, can I come in?"

She nodded nervously, biting her lip as she stepped back, watched as he headed straight for the living room.

"You want to call Troy?" Kelsi asked before she followed him.

Gabriella nodded. He'd been nice when he was here before, but Troy hadn't left her alone with him. She knew she wasn't ready for that.

* * *

Troy rushed through the door, speeding through the house towards the living room, leaving his mother to get his daughters out of the car.

He frowned at the sight in front of him.

"She went for a lay down." Kelsi told him, standing up.

"My grandchild was kicking." Jack was smiling, something that surprised his son. "I didn't get to feel that with the girls."

"Your fault." Troy muttered, knowing the words were the truth.

"I'm gonna go." Kelsi decided, walking towards the door. She turned when she reached it, having felt Troy follow her. "She was fine with him, a little nervous but fine. He was the one that actually told her to rest. She was so clearly fighting to stay awake."

He smiled. "I'm going to go and check on her, you okay to get home?"

Kelsi nodded, watching as Lucille ushered both girls inside, shooting her son a confused look.

Troy waved Kelsi off, closing the door when she pulled out of the driveway, before turning to his mother.

"Has he told you why he's come early?"

Troy shook his head. "Kelsi said they've been fine though." He turned towards the stairs. "I'm going to go and check on her. Can you handle the girls for a few more minutes?"

He headed up the stairs, making two at a time after she nodded.

Walking into their room he noticed the closed curtains, smiled at her relatively still figure curled up on the bed. He sat down by her, brushing some hair away from her face, careful not to wake her. He kissed her forehead lightly before placing a hand on her stomach.

"Hey you." He whispered, feeling the baby kicking. "You're gonna have to stop that for a while, you'll wake mommy up." He paused. "Mommy gets cranky when she hasn't had enough sleep, so it'd really help me if you let her sleep now. See, she's going to get very cranky when you're here, you won't be able to help that because you'll need mommy and daddy all the time." The kicking slowly subsided. "Thanks kid."

"Thanks, daddy." Troy looked back to his wife's face to see her staring back at him, a lazy smile on her face. He placed another kiss on her forehead.

"Go to sleep." He soothed, placing is free hand on her forehead, stroking it with his thumb. "You look exhausted, just sleep."

She nodded, closing her eyes. "I love you."

She was asleep before he responded.

**Reviewwww!**


	58. Blessing

**I know, it's been a while, and this is the last chapter, so the trilogy is almost over, on a good note, the epilogue is already 8 pages. When I first had to rewrite it, I decided to edit out the split and have the epilogue be one long chapter, but I'm 8 pages in and am not even halfway done with the first part, so we're back to the split again.**

**I have a oneshot in the works (almost done) which I'm hoping to have up soon, I'm not too confident with it right now though, so no idea how long it will be.**

* * *

The grin on her face might as well have been permanent. The sight of the baby nestled safely in her arms was enough to make her forget her exhaustion. She'd been up most of the night, just staring at the tiny features of the infant, only just two hours old, and ignoring all of her husbands attempts to get her to sleep.

The door opened, yet she didn't look up, examining the face of the newborn left her uninterested in who had entered the room.

She felt a slight pressure on the bed next to her, heard the soft voice of her husband as he whispered "Hey."

"Hi." She smiled, still focused on the baby. "I'm still not going to sleep."

She heard him chuckle lightly. "Mom says the girls are fine. Kirra wasn't too difficult when it came to bed. Tam stayed up an extra hour, apparently she's excited."

Gabriella finally looked up at him. "It's like she knew." She paused. "She kept telling us."

"Mom said she'd bring them by tomorrow." Troy smiled, reaching out to brush the infant's cheek with his finger. "To meet him."

"She'll love him." Gabriella smiled. "Her baby brother."

"I'm so proud of you." He brought his lips to her forehead kissing her softly before pulling her into his arms, wary of their son still settled in her arms. He traced the baby's features with his free hand, running his finger lightly over his tiny face. "He's perfect."

"He is." Gabriella agreed. "He's beautiful."

"Like his mommy." Troy smiled. He kissed her again before once again fixing his gaze on their son. "You gonna tell mommy to go to sleep?"

"I'm not sleeping." She declined. "I don't want to miss a second."

"Okay." He sighed, knowing that eventually she'd be unable to avoid it. "No sleep for now." He kissed her again. "I called your dad." He felt her nod. "He and your mom are getting the first flight out." He paused as she yawned. "Not sure about Carly. Can't see him managing to keep her away though."

"House full?" She queried, and he could tell she was far from happy with the prospect. "I thought they'd give us a week or two."

"They're staying at a hotel." He smiled, brushing his lips against her curls. "Your mom's idea."

"I love her."

Troy watched as a lazy smile graced her face. "I love you."

"You have to say that." She claimed. "I just had your baby."

He chuckled. "I loved you before we'd even thought about babies."

"That seems soooo long ago."

He nodded in agreement. "It does."

A loud cry echoed through the room, and they both automatically looked down at their infant son, squirming in his mother's arms as he screamed.

"The crying." She sighed. "One part I didn't miss." She hesitated, adjusting the baby's position. "He's hungry."

"How can you tell?"

"Call it mother's intuition."

He smiled softly. "You want me to go for a bit?"

She shook her head. "You should probably get the nurse though. Remember Kirra's first feed? They got a little annoyed that we didn't get them first or something."

**-IP-**

"Daddy said I can have a pony, and a pool, and a trampoline, and a treehouse, and a sandbox."

Lucille listened intently as her elder granddaughter listed the things her father had promised her some weeks before. The promises had come after a discussion he had had with Gabriella about the future. Gabriella's curiosity,and her nearing due date, had led her to ask how many children he wanted, and, upon hearing that his wife wanted more children, he'd decided to bring up something he'd wanted to discuss for a while: building their dream house.

Lucille had understood Gabriella's initial hesitation, but the younger woman had soon come round to the idea when she realised it meant her home would be just that: hers. In every way. Including design.

"That's great, princess." She responded, realising the child was eyeing her curiously. "Eat your breakfast and we can go and see mommy."

"And my brother." Tamsin reminded firmly. "Daddy promisedddddd."

"Princess?" Lucille decided to address what she knew had been one of Gabriella's main concerns over the past few weeks. "You know that Cameron being here doesn't stop mommy and daddy from loving you, right?"

"Mommy said..." Tamsin drew in an exaggerated deep breathe. "That they love me and they love Kirra, and they love my brother."

Lucille smiled. "That's right." She sat down next to her. "Mommy and daddy love you very much."

"And Kirra, and my brother."

Lucille laughed lightly. "Baby, you can call him Cameron, you know."

"I'm not a baby!" Tamsin exclaimed, her eyes widening as she turned to her grandmother. "My brother's a baby."

"Of course." Lucille gasped as if the reminded had been necessary. "Eat up now, princess."

**-IP-**

Troy closed the door quietly, holding the whimpering infant in his arms. Gabriella had just got to sleep, and he wasn't ready for their son to wake her.

"How about we let mommy sleep a while, bub?" He cooed, his eyes focused on the baby. "She says having a baby is hard work, and seeing as I was there, I tend to agree with her."

Cameron was slowly settling in his arms, drifting back to sleep as his father spoke to him.

"You're gonna meet your big sisters today, little man." He spoke softly. "They're going to love you." He looked up at the sound of running footsteps, smiling as he noticed Tamsin hurtling towards him. "Here they come. You ready?"

"DADDDDDY!" Tamsin squealed, running for her father's legs, but stopping short when she saw what was in his arms. "Can I have my brother now?"

"I think daddy should hold him until we sit down, princess, okay?"

Tamsin's eyes narrowed, but she nodded, reluctantly agreeing as another scream caught his attention.

He looked up to see Kirra violently struggling in his mother's arms. Screaming as if the world was ending and calling for her mother. Letting them approach, he watched, helpless as his daughter desperately reached out for him, hating that he couldn't pull her into his arms for comfort.

The toddler's tears increased, and he automatically looked to his father. "Dad, can you..."

Jack smiled, nodded in agreement before holding his arms out, taking his grandson from his son's arms.

As soon as Cameron was settled, Troy immediately turned to his mother, holding his arms out to his younger daughter. To his relief, she accepted him, clinging onto him as soon as she could. "Sweetie, what's the matter?"

"I think she's just confused." Lucille spoke up, her gaze flickering between him and the baby. "She was fine last night, but she's been crying ever since she found out you weren't there this morning."

Troy sighed. "Daddy's sorry, sweetie." He'd thought Tamsin would be the problem, being older this time, both he and Gabriella had thought she'd be more likely to get jealous, they hadn't considered Kirra getting clingy. "Hey hey, stop the crying sweetie, daddy's here now. It's okay."

"I think she wants to see mommy." Tamsin spoke up, her tone more a way of telling her father that she too, wanted his attention.

"Mommy's sleeping right now." He carefully knelt down to make eye contact with the four-year-old. "She's very tired." He stood back up, stepping towards the door as he realised that Kirra had quietened down, opening it slowly. "You've got to be quiet, okay princess?"

Tamsin nodded, darting past him and into the room, climbing up onto the end of the bed without help, watching her sleeping mother curiously. She turned back to him, whispering as the rest of the family entered. "Is mommy tired because you weren't home all night."

Troy smiled. "Yeah, sorta."

He turned back to his mother, whom had now taken Cameron from Jack and was fussing over him, sitting in one of the chairs provided in the room. Kirra was still clinging to him, her face buried in the crook of his neck.

"He's perfect." Lucille claimed, her eyes fixated, like most people's were, on the baby. "Absolutely perfect."

Tamsin jumped off of the bed, walking over to her grandmother, stopping next to the chair as she surveyed her brother. "Why's he so small?"

"He'll get bigger." Jack answered. "He's just a baby right now." He paused, glancing over at his son before continuing. "You were that small once."

Tamsin's eyes narrowed. "Noooooooo. I'm big." She remained focused on her brother. "Helllloooo baby." She waited for a few seconds before turning to Troy. "Why won't he answer?"

"He can't talk yet." Troy tried explaining. "Remember when Kirra couldn't talk? He's just got to learn, but not for a while."

The four-year-old frowned, but accepted the answer, turning back to her brother. "I like him."

**-IP-**

"Girls!" Andrew called as both of his teenage daughters ran through the doors to the hospital. "Walk."

They stopped, waiting for their parents to catch up with them.

"It's only a baby." Evan grinned. "He looked kinda like an alien when I saw him."

"Nice way to talk about your nephew, Ev." Carly laughed. "Gab would kill you for saying that."

"He does not!" Isobel argued. "He's adorable." She smirked. "Evan's just annoyed because Troy called me first last night."

"Troy called you first because he knew you'd go all gaga." Evan claimed. "Whereas I am a man, and am not as affected by babies."

"Hey dad?" Isobel suddenly turned round. "Are you and mom going to move up here when we're all here?"

Andrew sighed, continuing to move forward with his wife and younger three children. "I know you miss us, kiddo. But Gabriella and Evan are here, you'll get used to college in no time."

"I'm talking about when Carly's here too." She elaborated. "You and mom are going to be in Albuquerque alone."

"Hey!" Carly interrupted. "I haven't even decided where I want to go yet, I don't even know if I'm going to come to this part of the country."

"Girls." Maria stepped in. "Not today." They followed her as she began to walk ahead of them. "You know how tired your sister is going to be. She doesn't need any tension."

"You know, she could have waited a week to go into labour." Carly smirked. "I'm going to have to take it up with her. We'd have been here next weekend, if she'd have waited, we wouldn't have had to catch a last minute flight."

"Try telling your nephew that." Andrew smiled the teen's somewhat amusing logic. "Babies come when they want to come."

"You were three weeks early." Evan pointed out. "CJ's a week late."

"Gabs is so gonna kill you if you keep calling him that." Isobel responded. "His name is Cameron, not CJ."

"Cameron Jack." Evan corrected. "CJ."

Isobel rolled her eyes, leading her parents and sister towards the room she'd left earlier that morning, shortly after the birth of her nephew. Opening it, she smiled at her sister, whom was sitting up on the bed, her daughters both sleeping in her arms.

Her focus moved as she noticed movement in the corner, and her smile widened at the sight of Lucille Bolton, clearly having just stood up, Cameron safely in her arms.

"Maria." She greeted immediately. "It's so good to see you." She slowly approached, stopping in front of her friend. "Isn't he perfect?"

"Am I going to get him back at any point?" Gabriella questioned from her position on the bed, smiling as Tamsin snuggled further into her side.

"No." Both older woman answered, laughing at the unison.

"Where's Troy?" Carly brought up, glancing back out of the door. "You mean he actually left the room?"

"He's gone home to make sure the nursery is ready for tonight." Gabriella smiled. "He wasn't happy about leaving, but I made him. I want everything ready for Cam when we get home tonight."

"They're releasing you already?" Maria queried, turning curiously to her oldest child. "You were kept in for a few days with the girls."

"It's not necessary I guess." Gabriella shrugged. "Tamsin was our first baby, I guess they wanted to make sure we knew what we were doing. Kirra had that respiratory problem and I refused to leave without her."

Maria nodded. "You did good, sweetheart." She smiled at the sight of her two granddaughters. "With all three of them."

Gabriella smiled genuinely, looking around the room at her family. Her daughters curled up by her sides, her sisters, mother and mother-in-law fussing over her newborn son. Her brother and father watching the women by the door. Her husband and father-in-law, whom had both been reluctant to leave before, stepping quietly through the door of the room. It was moments like these, she realised, that made life impossibly perfect.

* * *

**Give the epilogue a few weeks at least, still got a bit to go.**

**Review!**


	59. Epilogue: Part 1

**Part one of the epilogue, one more part after this.**

**Sorry to the amazing reviewer whom actually got a preview of this back when I started writing it over a year ago, I lost it and had to rewrite, so that part's not actually in it anymore. I remember who you are, I'll send you a preview of part 2 if I remember.**

* * *

_Eight Years Later_

Tamsin Bolton sighed as she closed her math book, relieved that she'd finished her homework. It wasn't that she found it hard, it was that it bored her to no end.

Glancing over at her sisters she rolled her eyes, observing the typical behaviours she'd become accustomed to. Kirra was curled up reading a book, completely oblivious to the unnecessarily loud volume that Cara had turned the TV to, clearly having no regard for her sleeping twin.

"Where's Cam?" Tamsin spoke, waiting for Kirra to respond, knowing she wouldn't look up. "Dad should be home soon."

"Outside." The 10-year-old answered. "Back yard."

"I don't want to hear your excuses." Their mother's voice came through clear, despite her clear attempts to stay quiet. "You said you'd be here by six, you're not getting in if you're not here."

Kirra's eyes darted up to meet her sister's. "You said they weren't fighting any more."

"I didn't think they were." Tamsin felt the need to defend herself before sensing her sister's insecurities. "They're not going to get a divorce Kirra. They love each other."

"That didn't stop them before." Kirra interrupted. "They almost did that time."

Tamsin frowned, reflecting on the events of two years ago, knowing that it was likely that only she and Kirra recalled their father's neglect of their mother, something that had led the latter to ask him to leave.

"Mom and Dad are complicated, Kir." Tamsin insisted. "Besides, dad's always around now, they're fine, they're not going to get a divorce."

"Auntie Taylor and Uncle Chad are." Kirra pointed out. "What's stopping them?"

"Love." Both girls turned to the door at the voice, seeing their mother's face looking back at them. "We're not fighting."

"Who were you on the phone to?" Tamsin decided to ask, knowing Kirra would not settle until she had been completely assured.

"Your uncle Evan." Gabriella replied. "He's meant to be coming to dinner tonight, remember, with Kaiya?"

"I don't like her." Cara suddenly announced. "She's jealous cos Uncle Evan likes me better."

"He always calls you Daisy, Cara." Kirra laughed.

"That's cos we look the same." Cara stated, trying to feign maturity in her voice, before questioning her mother. "Why do we look the same mommy?"

"You're identical twins." Tamsin laughed, "The identical part means you look the same."

"But we're not the same." Cara announced. "Daisy sleeps more than me."

Gabriella laughed at her daughter's comment, thinking back and smiling at the truthfulness of it.

_A single cry erupted through the house, disrupting the previous calm._

_Gabriella yawned, rolling over in her husbands arms before pushing him slightly. "Your daughter's crying."_

"_My daughter?" His response was accompanied by a lazy smile. "I believe she's your daughter too."_

"_She's your daughter when she cries." Gabriella answered, kissing him lightly as he grinned. "Hurry back."_

_He shook his head, his amusement obvious as he stumbled out of bed and headed towards the nursery, knowing that his wife did need the sleep._

"_Cara." He sighed, walking over to the same crib as he always did at all times during the night. "What's the matter, baby girl?"_

_Lifting her up he was relieved when she went quiet, her new-found silence had answered his question: she'd been feeling lonely._

"_Did you just want a cuddle?" He questioned, smiling at the three month old. "Your grampy told me that your mommy was like this when she was your age. In fact, come to think of it, she's still like it now."_

"_Don't tell her that."He heard his wife's whisper from the door, pleased that he'd managed to get her to admit she was there just by relaying harmless facts to their infant daughter._

"_I thought you were in bed." He queried, turning around to face her._

"_I wanted to see if she was okay." Gabriella admitted. "Is she?"_

"_She was just it bit lonely." He explained. "She wanted a cuddle."_

"_Aww baby." Gabriella crooned, quickly approaching them and pulling the baby into her own arms. _

_Troy watched her interaction with their child as she fussed, smiling at the sight._

"_Maybe we should keep her with us." Gabriella suggested. "Just for a while, until she settles."_

"_No." He refused. "You said we couldn't let them go in with us because it would scare them when we moved them out. Besides, we never let any of the others, and you know what Tamsin's been like recently."_

"_Maybe Tammy could come in too?"_

"_Gabs, you really want our eight year old sleeping in our room?"_

"_Well, no, but..."_

"_Look, she's asleep." He smiled, watching his daughter as she slept against her mother's chest. "Put her back in her crib and go back to bed, you look exhausted."_

_He was surprised when Gabriella followed his orders instead of arguing a bit more, gently placing Cara down in her crib and turning in the other direction. "I'm just going to check on Daisy."_

_He rolled his eyes, he'd already known she'd insist on doing that, he'd probably have done it himself if she'd of stayed in bed._

"_She's asleep."_

_Quietly they left the room, finally making it back to bed some five minutes later after he relented and let her check on their other three children._

"Is daddy going to be home soon?" Kirra queried, clearly still worried despite being reassured. "He'll be here for dinner, right?"

Gabriella nodded. "I promise you sweetie, daddy will be home for dinner. Any minute now. How about you go and get Cameron in for me?"

Kirra nodded, slowly leaving the room.

"Is dad really going to be back?" Tamsin wondered aloud. "He was late last night, and a couple of times last week. Mom, are you sure it won't happen again?"

"Yes, Tammy." Gabriella answered truthfully. "It won't happen again. I know it. Things are hectic at work for him right now, but you know he'd rather be here, don't you?"

The frown that graced her daughter's face reminded her of the time just over two short years ago when she herself, hadn't known that.

_Troy paused as he walked into his house. Not one of his five children could be heard anywhere, something that was a very rare occurrence. Usually Tamsin would be worrying over homework while Kirra was broadcasting her concerns about the environment to her younger siblings. Only Daisy would pretend to listen, Cara would turn up the volume of the TV, having just discovered the volume control, and Cameron would mock his older sister in a way that was only adorable coming from a child._

_He listened to the silence again, frowning when he finally noticed the one sound coming from the house: the sound of someone crying. More specifically, the sound of his wife crying._

_He quickly approached the noise, panic rushing through him, thought after thought running through his head, theories about what had happened, appropriate responses for each scenario._

"_Baby." He sighed when he reached her, attempting to pull her into a hug, surprised when she resisted. "Baby, what's wrong? What's happened? Are you hurt? Where are the kids? Are they hurt?"_

_She let out a sob before responding, refusing to make eye contact with him. "I can't do this any more, Troy. I can't pretend that everything's okay. Its not healthy, for me or for the kids."_

"_Angel." He continued trying to soothe, his voice almost succeeding in getting her to look at him. "Baby, what are you talking about? You're scaring me."_

"_I need you to leave." She cried. "I can't live like this. We barely ever talk any more, and when we do we fight, and it hurts. I love you, Troy. But it's obvious that you don't love me, and I don't want you staying with me out of obligation. That's not fair to either of us."_

_He flinched against her words. "Baby." He kept his tone soft, knowing he had to avoid scaring her. "I love you so much. You know I do. Please don't doubt that. Please don't do this. I love you. I know I don't say it anywhere near enough, but that doesn't make it any less true."_

"_I'll, um, call you about the kids." She continued as if she hadn't heard him, but he knew by her change in posture that she had. "I won't keep you away from them, you're their father..."_

"_Baby," He interrupted, reaching out to caress her cheek, recoiling when he felt her tense under his touch. "Right now i'm more concerned that you're going to try and keep me away from YOU. Please, baby, we need to talk about this, really talk. I promise I won't yell. We'll sort all this out and everything will be okay."_

_She broke down again. "I need you to go. Please... don't make...don't make this harder than it already is."_

"_Okay, okay." He relented, knowing his best bet at that moment was to do whatever she wanted him to do. "I'll go and stay at Zeke and Shar's for a few days. I'll give you some space. But we will talk about this. I love you. Don't forget that. Don't do anything rash, okay?."_

_He watched as she nodded before slowly backing out of the room, turning around in the hopes that she'd say something to make him stop, but she didn't. The tears were already in his eyes as he left the house. He'd really screwed up._

She smiled as she remembered Sharpay's reaction to the separation. She'd called him all the names under the sun at the beginning of the phone call, but had summed it up with, "despite all that though, he loves you, and you love him, so it's all gonna work out, remember, he may be an ass , but he's your ass."

It had taken the blonde no more than two weeks to convince her to talk to her husband, and it turned out that that one conversation with him had been all she'd needed. His words alone made her cling onto him as if her life depended on it, and although he'd been wary of moving back home that night, trying to consider her feelings, her refusal to leave without him had forced his hand, Taylor wouldn't have wanted to stay with the kids all night, she did, after all, have her own family to go home to.

She still felt guilty sometimes, that it had taken her months to admit to him that she had almost filed for divorce, had changed her mind at the last minute, but although his refusal to blame her for anything annoyed her to no end, he hadn't done anything to upset her since, although he had made her cry mere days after moving back in by proposing to her again in a way of suggesting that they renew their wedding vows.

"_Baby." Gabriella smiled at the sound of her husbands voice as he came back downstairs. "Where are you?"_

"_Kitchen." She called back just loud enough for him to hear, their kids were all in bed._

_Mere seconds later she felt arms wrap around her from behind and a kiss pressed into her temple. "I missed you."_

"_You were upstairs." She laughed, slightly in awe of how easy it had been to go back to being themselves around eachother._

"_Twenty minutes is a long time." He commented, earning a giggle from her. "Anyways, talking of upstairs..." He waited until she playfully slapped him before continuing. "I have surprise for you."_

"_Hmm." She responded, allowing him to lead her up the stairs, towards their bedroom. She gasped at the sight in front of her: Rose petals were scattered all over the bed, candles flickering all around the room, she could smell the scent of her favourite bubble bath coming in from the en suite. Finally, turning back to him, she noticed he was now on one knee. She gasped again at the sight of the ring box in his hand, was shocked at the sight of the ring when he opened it. It was clearly antique, it must have cost him a fortune._

"_Gabriella," he began, before sighing and biting his lip. "You'd think I wouldn't be as nervous this time, you already said yes once." she giggled at his words, waiting for him to continue. "I've been an ass, something that I will only ever admit to you, but those two weeks, they were hell." She tried to interrupt but he silenced her with a gesture. "They helped me think. I know what I want now. Okay, I didn't ask your dad this time, although if you want me to, I will. But, oh you know i'm not good with words. Gabriella, will you marry me?" He paused. "Again."_

_She smiled, the tears glistening in her eyes, and nodded._

"_We're already married." She giggled as he slipped the ring onto an empty finger, not wanting it to be a distraction to her wedding and engagement bands, they were still the important ones, this ring was solely for he purpose of the re-proposal._

"_You can have as many weddings as you want." He informed her. "As long as I get to be the groom."_

"_Of course."_

"_We can even write our own vows this time." He insisted. "I can start mine with 20 pages on how perfect you are."_

_She felt the tears slip down her cheeks as she kissed him, smiled as she felt him hold her as close to him as he could._

_He pulled away. "As much as I'd love to stay like that for, well, ever, I ran you a bath."_

_She grinned cheekily. "Care to join me?"_

Gabriella was brought out of her thoughts by the sound of the door opening, finally noticing that Tamsin was no longer in the room.

A cry erupted from upstairs and her husbands voice sounded immediately. "I got it."

The sound of his footsteps on the stairs made her grin, he'd only just walked through the door and the first thing he did was go to soothe their youngest. The baby that had been the result of the rebuilt trust between them.

Minutes later he appeared in the doorway of the room, their baby son in his arms. "I think someone's hungry."

"Definitely his father's son." She commented, walking over to him and taking the five month old infant. "Can you finish dinner while I make a bottle up?"

"He taking the bottles now?" Troy questioned, following her to the kitchen. "Not refusing any more?"

"Oh, he's refusing." She responded. "Poor baby. He doesn't understand why he's being given bottles instead."

Troy smirked. "Maxie, you have to have the bottles, daddy doesn't like sharing."

Gabriella gasped, using her free hand to slap her husband's chest. "Cara can hear you!"

"She doesn't know what I mean." He pointed out, glancing over at their four year old twins, frowning to see one fast asleep. "Is Daisy okay?"

"Tay came over." Gabriella sighed. "Tyler kept chasing her."

"That kid has turned into a bully." He scoffed. "Probably because he's spoilt. I'm gonna tell Taylor that if Tyler keeps picking on my kids, then the boy can't come over."

"Kirra disappears when he gets here." she informed him. "He annoys her, personally I think he has a crush on her, but Kirra, she's a lot like me, she doesn't like the attention."

"A fact that I am eternally grateful for." he answered. "She's less likely to date early."

"You won't be able to stop her when she can." she laughed, her grin growing at the look on his face. "Just saying."

"I'll lock her in her room." He decided. "And all girls schools, we'll have to look into all girls schools."

"No we don't." She continued to laugh. "You really want to try that? Especially with Tammy. Two years babe. Two years and our eldest little girl will be dating."

"I changed my mind." He answered without hesitation. "Eighteen. Yes, eighteen. They can date when they're eighteen."

"The boys as well?"

"No, they can still date at fourteen."

"That's unfair."

"They're not my daughters, and I'M raising them, they will be gentlemen." Troy tried reasoning. "My sons will respect women, not like those little criminals that would be near my daughters."

"You don't know that they'll be like that." She smirked. "They might be incredibly nice boys."

"Any boy that touches any of my baby girls is not nice." He insisted. "Weren't you fourteen when you met Kieran?"

"Low blow." She commented, her smile fading. "But I get your point. We're just going to have to watch them."

"MOM, CAMERON'S GONNA JUMP IN THE POOL!" Tamsin's voice suddenly echoed through the house.

"I told you that pool was a bad idea." Gabriella frowned, shaking her head at her husband as he headed out of the room, "but you just had to have it."

She followed, stepping out onto the patio, the baby still in her arms, watching as her husband reached out, grasping their older son just before he managed to jump into the water, she giggled as he spun around, carrying the eight year old back towards the house.

"You know the rules Cameron." He was lecturing. "You don't go near the pool without me, mommy or Emily."

"It's not fair." The child complained. "I wanted to swim after lunch but mommy was looking after Max and Emily said no and you were at work. I don't like Emily anyway, she's not nice."

"Emily's great, dad." Tamsin contradicted. "Cameron just doesn't like it when he can't get his own way."

"You're a liar!" Cameron squirmed in his fathers arms, attempting to kick out.

"Whoa, whoa whoa." Came a new voice, causing everyone outside to look towards the back door. "What did we just walk into?" Evan grinned, walking over to his sister and wrapping an arm around her, careful of his nephew, as well as Cara, who had settled in his other arm. "Lookin good sis, although i'm gonna have to ask you to cut back on the phone threats."

"Aren't you hilarious." Gabriella rolled her eyes. "How did you get in?"

"Daisy here answered the door, didn't you Daisy."

"That's Cara."

"I know that." He laughed, amused by the expression on the child's face. "I'm keeping this one, figured I'd help you out, take one off your hands."

"Troy." Gabriella called back to her husband, immediately feeling her brother step back from her. "My brother wants to abduct our daughter."

"Ev." Troy sighed, the glint of amusement in his eyes only evident to his wife. "If you want kids, have your own, I want all of mine, always will."

Evan pulled a face, turning to Cara. "Mommy and daddy won't let you come home with Uncle Evan, kid." He let out an exaggerated sigh, turning to his brother-in-law. "You sure you want all six of them?"

"Certain."

"Can I have the next one?"

"The next one will be yours." Gabriella commented. "We're done now. Six is a good number."

"Six is an insane number." Kaiya put in, speaking for the first time since she'd entered the house. "No way would I be able to cope with six."

Troy smiled. "Couldn't keep her off of me."

"Dude." Gabriella laughed at her brother's face as she slapped her husband's chest. "That's my sister."

* * *

**That feels like the weirdest place to leave it, but I like it.**

**Review!**


	60. Epilogue: Part 2

**Welllll, this is it, the end of the trilogy. To everyone who put up with me through all three (especially the first one, which, lets face it, was terrible), you're all my new best friends. Okay, seriously, you're all great, you put up with my random rants, with the shortest chapters in existence, with a severe lack of updates when I was being lazy and referring to it as writers block, with a severe lack of updates when I actually had writers block, with my extreme hatred of fluff, with my inability to function without TV (although the last season of Greys Anatomy made it REALLY easy to give up), with my tendancy to put in little tidbits from my favourite TV shows and Movies, with, well you get it, you put up with a lot. Congratulations for surviving me. Good luck to the ones reading my other stories, because the above list is likely to continue, except the random rants, all of the random left my head back in 2009, you'll be the first to know if it comes back.**

**One of those that isn't continued here, but will in my other stories, is my extreme hatred of fluff. It's a epilogue, it kinda goes with the territory.**

* * *

"Dad?" Gabriella turned as she heard her eldest daughter speak. "Are you crying?"

"No." She heard her husband respond, but realised as she caught his gaze that he was.

"Hey." She commented. "That's my job."

He nodded slightly, admitting to her what he hadn't admitted to their daughter. "We're losing another one. She's all grown up."

Gabriella smiled, turning back to the front to where another of their children, their second daughter, was celebrating her graduation with her friends.

"I don't know whether or not I should be insulted." Tamsin spoke up. "I mean, you didn't cry when I graduated, or when I left for college." The smirk on her face gave away her true feelings. "Then again, mom did, and she's not crying now." She paused before adding another statement. "Look at the bright side, dad. You've still got Cam."

The sixteen-year-old rolled his eyes at his sister's words, having gotten used to them over the years. "Too bad you keep coming back."

"Ahh, sibling love." They turned at the comment, and Gabriella smiled at the sight of all three of her own siblings standing beside them. Evan turned to the younger of his sister's daughter's, the identical twins he oftened pretended to get mixed up. "Why are you two looking so smart?"

"Kirra didn't want us to show her up." Cara answered. "As if having to look smart at our own graduation in a few years isn't going to be bad enough."

"Where's Aunt Helen?"

"Ahhh, Daisy." Evan turned them both round, wrapping an arm over each of their shoulders as he continued. "The things you don't understand about pregnant women." He paused, watching as the twins exchanged a look, sensing another long-winded speech coming from him. "See, she was hungry, and then she was tired, and then..."

"Aunt Carly, save us." Cara screeched, twisting out of her uncle's grip and turning around, wrapping her arms around her aunt. Daisy followed, smiling as Carly responded to them.

"Hey, sweets." She greeted, shaking her head amusedly at her brother. "Is your Uncle Ev trying to give you life lessons again?" She laughed as the twelve-year-old's both nodded, then looked up. "Hey sis."

Gabriella smiled softly. "Hey."

"How you holding up?" Isobel put in, shooting her older sister a knowing glance. "Two out of six graduated. Must be quieter at your house."

"You underestimate Max." Gabriella reminded the younger woman, ruffling the hair of her youngest child. "How are the boys?"

"Harry's had a bug." Isobel frowned for a second. "Luke's grounded. I left them with Henry. He's sorry he couldn't make it."

"I'm sure Kirra will understand." Troy decided, glancing towards his daughter, still chatting carelessly, before going back to the conversation. "She doesn't seem ready for this."

"She's more ready than you are." Gabriella commented, leaning back into her husband. "Am I going to have to give you the talk you gave me two years ago when that was Tamsin up there?"

"Tam was ready." He explained, looking over to their older daughter, who was catching up with Sophie at the end of the aisle. "Tam was so obviously ready. She was always the one I figured I didn't have to worry about. Kirra. She's not meant to be out in the world, she's meant to be at home, with us."

"And instead," Carly smiled. "She's going to be at home with me and Kate, down in Florida."

"That's the only reason I'm letting her go." Troy stated. "She'll be with you and not all alone."

"Hey." Carly shrugged. "She chose the school, I figured I could use the babysitter, besides, it's cheaper than her own place."

"Where is Kate?" Daisy questioned, glancing up at her aunt's face. "Did you leave her in Florida?"

"She's with your grams. Her and Toby."

Gabriella started to look around. "Mom made it?"

"She said she ain't dead yet and this is Kirry's big day." Carly elaborated. "Dad's here too. Probably helping mom with my angel and Evan's devil spawn."

"Hey." Evan defended. "Toby's spirited, Kate's the one that screams all the time."

"She's two. She's meant to scream. Toby's five. He's out of control." Carly decided. "Not that it's your fault. Kaiya was the one that walked out on him."

"He doesn't need Kaiya." Evan insisted. "He's got me and he's got Helen. Helen is his mom, Kaiya lost that right when she walked out on us without a word."

"Guys." Isobel interrupted, spotting Kirra approach them. "Not today, okay? Today's about Kirra."

"I did it, mom." Kirra was grinning as she reached them. "I actually graduated." She turned to her dad. "Oh no, dad, tell me you weren't crying."

"Sorry, sweetie." He apologised. "I just don't like that you're going so far away."

"It's not as if I won't come back." Kirra pointed out. "My whole life is here, dad, but I need to see the world, or atleast, see another part of America."

"We took you to Florida when you were kids." Troy pointed out. "There, you've seen it, time to go home."

"Daaaad." Kirra whined. "I was seven, I barely remember it."

"It means we can go to disney world, dad." Cara tried, pouting at her father, having perfected the expression after years of observing her mother and older sisters. "If Kirra's gonna be there we've got more reason to go."

"Hey." Tamsin argued. "Why don't you get all excited about visiting me?"

"Because there's nothing to do in Seattle." Cara answered. "Seriously, couldn't you have gone to New York or something? So much more interesting."

"So much more crime." Tamsin countered, attempting to stare her sibling down.

"Is that true?" Daisy queried. "I mean, have you looked at crime rates? Do you actually know that for sure?"

"Mom." Tamsin complained. "Do you have to tell her about your job? She's getting obsessed."

Kirra sighed wistfully, focusing on her parents as she gestured to her siblings. "You have no idea how much I'm going to miss that."

**-IP-**

"DAD!"

Troy looked up from the ball and towards the house, spying his youngest daughter standing just inside the back door. The urgency in her voice making him panic somewhat.

"You okay?"

"No." She complained, folding her arms across her chest before explaining. "I was meant to leave for ballet five minutes ago, and mom's still not back from the store. I'm gonna be late."

He looked at his watch, realising that his daughter was right. He frowned, turning towards the three that had previously had his attention. "You two are gonna have to carry on without me. Cam, you'll be okay with Cara if I take Daisy?"

"Max too?" Cameron queried in unison with his younger sister's, "I can take care of myself, daddy."

"Nah, I'd better take Max." Troy explained. "I'd be in trouble with your mom if I left him too." He turned towards Cara, taking in her expression. "You better listen to your brother until your mother or I get back."

"Daaaad." Daisy complained. "I gotta go."

Troy nodded, lifting Max into his arms before addressing Cameron and Cara again. "You two be good."

He headed towards the car, checking Max's seatbelt twice before getting in himself, checking Daisy's before he started the car.

"Dad." Daisy spoke. "I can manage a seatbelt you know."

"Hey." He responded. "I'm your dad, it's my job to be paranoid." He paused as he pulled out of the driveway. "So... Do you want me to stay there with you?"

"I'm twelve." Daisy pointed out. "Not six. I think I'll manage."

He nodded, suddenly feeling a little put out. "You don't need me so much anymore." He hesitated, watching the small smile that appeared on Daisy's face. "I don't like that, can we go back three years?" Daisy laughed, waiting for him to continue. "At least you still need me, right Max?"

"To play monster trucks and dinosaurs and baseball?"

"Yeah Max." Troy smiled. "To play baseball."

"Dad?" He nodded as he heard Daisy's questioning tone, prompting her to continue. "Why am I the only one that's not good at sport?"

"Ballet's a sport." He answered. "Figure skating."

"I mean..." Daisy cut off. "Like basketball and baseball, like the others."

"We're all good at different things." He reminded her. "Have you ever seen Tamsin try and skate?" Daisy shook her head, something he caught out of the corner of her eye. "She falls. Every time." He quickly glanced at her. "You may not be good at basketball or baseball or soccer like the others, baby girl, but none of them can dance like you can, you have no idea how proud I feel when I see you in those recitals."

"But we have nothing to talk about."

"Hey." He tried to reassure her. "You know that you and I not being good at the same things doesn't make me love you any less, right?"

"I know." She confirmed. "I just wish we had something."

"We do." He elaborated. "You know what we do have in common? One big thing?"

"What?"

"We both worry like no other." He smiled. "And, believe it or not, I was pretty good at drama too in my day."

"Really?"

"How about, after you get home from ballet, I show you the DVD of the musical I was in with your mom? We can watch it together."

"I'd like that." Daisy smiled.

"Me too."

"Can you come in with me?" Daisy questioned some ten minutes later when they reached their destination. "There's this girl, Saffron, she doesn't like me that much."

"Because you're better than her?"

Daisy gave a faint smile. "Because she says I'm a liar when I say you're my dad. She says her brother knows everything about you and that you only have two sons."

Troy frowned, placing a hand on his daughter's shoulder. "Then he clearly doesn't know much then. Does it matter what they think?"

"She won't let it drop." Daisy elaborated. "Even if I don't mention it, she does, she won't leave me alone."

"Did you talk to the teacher?"

"The teacher's her mom."

"That's a bit off." He decided, opening the door to the car. "Come on, let's get you inside."

Troy followed as Daisy headed inside, clutching onto Max's hand as they walked down the hallway.

He saw heads turn to them as they entered the room, waved at a woman he recognised to be the mother of one of his daughter's friends. "I know you're perfectly capable of managing without me, but do you mind if we stay a while?"

"Don't you have to get home?"

"Cam can handle your sister for half an hour." He decided. "Besides, your mom should be home by now."

Daisy nodded before quickly heading over towards a small group of girls, and he moved towards the edge of the room, sitting next to another father on a bench by the far wall, settling Max next to him.

"Wife make you stay too?"

Troy turned to the other man, slightly put off by the statement. "No." he was honest in his answer. "I just want to see my little girl dance."

**-IP- **

"HELLO!" Gabriella called as she stepped into the house, kicking the door shut in order to avoid putting the bags on the ground. "Anyone home?"

"Hi, mom." Cara greeted, heading towards her and taking one of the bags. "You remembered the ice cream, right?"

"It won't be ice cream for much longer if it's not put in the freezer." Gabriella pointed out, glancing behind her daughter. "Where is everybody?"

"Daisy had ballet."

"Ballet?" Gabriella's eyes widened. "Oh, she's going to kill me, I said I'd be back."

"Chill." Cara giggled. "Dad took her. He's not back yet, so I think he stayed."

"He left you and Max with Cam?"

"No, he took Max with him." Cara explained, biting her lip. "Cam went out with friends." She watched as her mother's eyes narrowed slightly. "That was after dad left, and Cam called Grandma, she's in the yard. Not that he needed to, I can look after myself."

Gabriella visably relaxed. "I'm going to need to have a word with your brother." She walked towards the kitchen, placing the bag on the counter and waving to Lucille through the window. "If your dad trusted him to watch you, he should have stayed, not called Grandma." She paused. "Did he at least wait until she got here?" Cara bit her lip, refusing to make eye contact. "Cara Jane."

"Not the middle name!" Cara whined. "I'm not the one that did something wrong."

Gabriella surveyed her daughter for a moment. "How long?"

"How long what?"

"How long were you on your own before your Grandma got here?"

"Gabriella, sweetie." She turned at Lucille's voice. "She's okay. No harm done."

She turned back to her daughter, finally noticing the bandage around her hand that hadn't been there this morning. "What happened?"

"I dropped a glass." Cara relented. "I'm okay, it doesn't even hurt, and Grandma was here like, a minute later."

"That's not the point." Gabriella sighed, pulling out her phone and dialling a familiar number, she pulled the object to her ear, frowing when it went to voicemail. "Cameron Bolton, home. Now."

"Mom," Cara tried. "It was my fault, I shouldn't have tried to clear it up on my own."

"You shouldn't have been on your own!" Gabriella exclaimed. "Your father and I trust your brother to look after you if we have to go out. He should have waited until your Grandma was here."

"Gabriella." Lucille placed a hand on her daughter-in-laws shoulder. "She's okay."

"He should have been here." Gabriella insisted. "He knows. He knows how I feel about this." She ran a hand through her hair. "I need to..."

"Sleep." Lucille interrupted. "You need to sleep. Troy's been telling me you've got a pretty hectic workload, it's not easy being a working mom. Go and rest, calm down, and you and Troy can both speak to Cameron later."

Gabriella nodded, knowing the woman had a point, slowly heading upstairs.

Cara turned to her grandmother, frowning before whispering. "Grandma? Why did mom get so upset?"

Lucille frowned, moving towards the counter and sitting her grandaughter down, before sitting across from her. "You know that you and Daisy were very premature babies. You were very early." Cara nodded. "I guess no one told you before because we'd got past it, although now I'm not too convinced your mom and dad have." She hesitated, almost smiling at the concentration on her grandchild's face. "Your mom was in a car crash while she was pregnant with you and your sister. It wasn't life-threatening to her, but there were signs of distress when it came to the two of you, so you had to come early." She paused. "You were both very small. Daisy especially, and there was a point where we didn't think either of you would make it."

"So they get paranoid." Cara reasoned. "Because they thought we were going to die."

Lucille nodded. "You know how worried your daddy is about Kirra being at college?" Cara nodded. "With the two of you, I don't think he'll let you go."

**-IP-**

Troy smiled, approaching his wife's sleeping form, sitting down next to her as he listened to the sounds of their four youngest children downstairs. He pressed a kiss into her hair, smiling as she leaned back into him.

He pulled her against him. "Hey."

She turned to face him. "Hi."

"My mom just left." He told her. "She told me what happened." He started to draw circles on her arm as he felt her tense. "I talked to Cam, grounded him for a week. I think he gets why we're upset. He told me to tell you he's sorry, and that he didn't think she'd get hurt."

Gabriella nodded. "Daisy let you stay at ballet?"

"Yeah." He smiled. "She's amazing, better than the others." He moved to tuck a loose piece of hair behind her ear. "She's so much like you. So beautiful."

"Except the nose." Gabriella reminded him. "Everyone comments on how she and Cara are almost identical to me, except that nose. Your nose."

He laughed. "Those two are like minature versions of you. Both of them."

"Cameron's you." Gabriella decided. "In looks and personality."

He nodded. "Kirra called."

Gabriella automatically sat up. "Is she okay? How's school? Does she like it down there? You told her she can come back if she doesn't, right?"

"She's good." He answered. "She started classes yesterday. According to her, so far, so good. Carly's looking after her, she says she likes it, but she misses us and it's no California. Yes, I reminded her that if she ever wants to come back, she can." He hesitated. "She told me to get you to call her when you woke up. Apparently some issues still require a specific parent."

She reached for the phone, glancing at the clock before dialling Carly's home number, hesitating before calling the number to turn to her husband. "I love you."

He grinned. "I love you too."

He sat and waited as she spoke to their daughter in length, his gaze falling over her shoulder onto the one thing that hadn't moved from the bedside table in five years. The colour print of six children, aged between three and fifteen at the time, permanently smiling back at him. It had been taken one summer by the pool in their yard, two of the faces – Kirra and Cameron- just peering over the ledge, the twins sitting with their legs in the water, heads turned over their shoulders, the pink armbands shining in the sun, and Max, at three, clinging onto his oldest sister as she stood behind Kirra and Cameron, keeping a tight grip on the toddler herself. That image was one that he'd never be able to replace, like all of the images of his kids, of his wife, it was one of the few things that kept the smile on his face, that assured him that quitting his job all those years before when he realised hoe neglected his wife felt, had been once of the best things he'd ever done. It was that image, of the life that had almost been taken from him back when his oldest daughters were still toddlers, that showed him how far he'd come.

**Fin**

* * *

**One last time – Review?**


End file.
